The murdered woman, who worked as a teacher, was at home with her husband and their six children when the residence was attacked early on Sunday morning, according to the children's grandfather.
The children have been torn to pieces. They have been placed in a single body bag, says Mohammed Awad Khatab to reporters outside Al-Aqsa Hospital in the city of Deir al-Balah.
Is this what will give Israel security?
The AP news agency's reporter on site at the hospital confirms the number of dead bodies.
Thousands of orphans
During the night, four people from the same family were killed in another Israeli attack near the city of Khan Yunis, according to hospital sources. Another four people were killed in an attack in central Gaza, according to the Awda Hospital.
The Hamas-controlled Health Department also reports that two men, a woman, and her daughter were killed in an attack in the city of Jabaliya.
Months of Israeli bombings of the densely populated Gaza Strip have resulted in many cases where entire families have been killed and thousands of children left orphaned. In total, over 40,000 people have been killed in Gaza during the war, according to figures from the Gaza Strip's Hamas-controlled authorities.
Israel has faced sharp criticism for a number of attacks on school buildings and refugee camps in Gaza.
Cautious optimism
Israel claims that it is only targeting combatants and blames the high civilian death toll on the terrorist-stamped Hamas, which it accuses of hiding among civilians.
Meanwhile, preparations are underway for further talks on a ceasefire. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken traveled to the region on Sunday to try to reach an agreement on Israel's withdrawal from Gaza in exchange for the release of Israeli hostages.
The mediators have expressed cautious optimism after initial negotiations in Qatar. However, the terrorist-stamped Hamas has not yet participated directly in the talks and has rejected what it describes as new conditions from Israel.
