A senior Hamas official told AFP on Tuesday that a delegation from the Palestinian group had departed for Cairo to discuss "new ideas" for achieving a ceasefire with Israel.

"The delegation will meet with Egyptian officials to discuss new ideas aimed at reaching a ceasefire," the official said, following Hamas's rejection of Israel's most recent offer last week.

The announcement came after Gaza's civil defence agency said that a spate of Israeli air strikes since dawn on Tuesday killed at least 25 people across Gaza.

Israel resumed an intense air and ground offensive on Gaza on March 18, ending a two-month ceasefire that had largely halted the fighting in the besieged Palestinian territory.