'We left behind martyrs' bodies burned beyond recognition'

Displaced Palestinians from Beit Hanoun shared harrowing accounts of the brutal Israeli air strikes that led to deaths, destruction and widespread suffering in northern Gaza on Sunday, according to the Palestinian civil defence.

Speaking to the search-and-rescue team as they arrived in Gaza City, the families recounted the horrific scenes they witnessed as they fled their homes.

According to the survivors, who had sought refuge in the Khalil Awida school in Beit Hanoun, Israeli forces carried out intense bombardments on the school, leaving behind up to 15 charred bodies of civilians who had been caught in the flames.

The school had been sheltering approximately 1,500 displaced people, many of whom had been living in makeshift conditions.

The families also reported seeing decomposed bodies in nearby streets and alleys and confirmed that several homes near the school were heavily targeted by air strikes.

Among these homes was the residence of the Abd al-Daem family, where witnesses heard cries for help coming from the rubble, fearing that more people were trapped beneath the destroyed buildings.

"We left behind martyrs' bodies, burned beyond recognition. Some are still under the rubble, crying out for help," one displaced family member told the civil defence.