At least 20 people, including women and children, have been killed and dozens more are feared trapped under the rubble after a Gaza apartment building collapsed following damage sustained in earlier Israeli attacks, authorities in the Palestinian enclave have said.

The six-storey building, which had four apartments on each floor, crumbled on Wednesday onto nearby homes and tents in the Tal al-Hawa area of Gaza City, according to the Civil Defence.

Mahmoud Basal, a spokesperson for the agency, told Global News Insight, “Civil Defence teams are still working to recover martyrs from under the rubble and search for missing people. Until now, there are nearly 100 Palestinians still under the rubble of this building.”

Local media reported that the building had previously been hit by Israeli strikes, leaving it cracked and structurally unsound before it collapsed.

Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza has destroyed or damaged thousands of buildings across the besieged territory, and Israel has severely restricted the entry of construction materials needed for repairs.

With so many Palestinians left homeless and severe shortages of construction materials, many displaced families have been forced to return to homes damaged by Israeli bombardment.