Israel pounds Gaza by air; Biden condemns 'evil' Hamas

Israel bombed Gaza overnight ahead of a potential ground assault against Hamas while US President Joe Biden condemned the Palestinian militant group's surprise attack as "sheer evil" and issued a warning seemingly aimed at its Iranian backers.

Israel bombed Gaza overnight ahead of a potential ground assault against Hamas while US President Joe Biden condemned the Palestinian militant group's surprise attack as "sheer evil" and issued a warning seemingly aimed at its Iranian backers.

Israel's death toll reached 1,200 with more than 2,700 wounded, its military said, from Hamas gunmen's hours-long rampage after breaching the fence around Gaza on Saturday.

Retaliatory strikes on the blockaded enclave have killed 1,055 people and wounded 5,184, Palestinian officials say.

Israel has vowed swift punishment for the deadliest Palestinian militant attack in its history that left bodies strewn around a music festival and a kibbutz community.

The military said dozens of its fighter jets struck more than 200 targets in a neighbourhood of Gaza City overnight that it said had been used by Hamas to launch its attacks.