An opinion poll in Israel shows that more than 60 percent of people support another deal for the release of hostages in exchange for a pause in the fighting.

Israeli newspaper Ma'ariv released the survey results on Friday, amid intensifying ground offensives by Israeli forces in the southern Gaza Strip, targeting Hamas. The Islamic group is still believed to be holding about 130 hostages.

The survey also asked who respondents preferred as prime minister, between current leader Benjamin Netanyahu and opposition party leader Benny Gantz, a former defense minister.

Gantz had the support of 46 percent of respondents, beating out Netanyahu, on 34 percent, up three percentage points from the previous survey. But the report says more people who voted for Netanyahu's Likud Party in the previous election are now supporting him.

The New York Times on Thursday carried a report on the southern part of the Gaza Strip based on an investigation using artificial intelligence to analyze satellite imagery and drone footage.

The paper says it looked at 208 bomb craters six weeks after the beginning of the conflict and believed they had been formed by 1 ton bombs dropped by Israeli forces.

The report cited munitions experts saying bombs of such a large size and destructive capacity are almost never dropped by US forces upon densely populated areas anymore.

Health authorities in Gaza say the death toll in the enclave has now passed 20,000.