Palestinian Death Toll Has Surpassed 70,000 Since the Israel-Hamas War Began, Gaza Ministry Says
The Palestinian death toll has surpassed 70,000 since the Israel-Hamas war began, Gaza’s Health Ministry said Saturday, while a hospital said that Israeli fire killed two Palestinian children in the territory’s south.
The toll has continued to rise after the latest ceasefire took effect on Oct. 10. Israel still carries out strikes in response to what it has called violations of the truce, and bodies from earlier in the war are being recovered from the rubble.
The Health Ministry says the Palestinian toll is now 70,100. The ministry operates under the Hamas-run government. It is staffed by medical professionals and maintains detailed records viewed as generally reliable by the international community.
The war began with the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, which killed around 1,200 people and fighters taking more than 250 hostages. Almost all of the hostages or their remains have been returned in ceasefires or other deals.
Staff at Nasser Hospital, which received the bodies of the children in southern Gaza, said the brothers, ages 8 and 11, died when an Israeli drone struck close to a school sheltering displaced people in the town of Beni Suhaila.
Israel’s military said it killed two people who crossed into an Israeli-controlled area, “conducted suspicious activities” and approached troops. The statement didn’t mention children. The military said it also killed another person in a separate but similar incident in the south.
At least 352 Palestinians have been killed across the territory since the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas took effect on Oct. 10, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which doesn’t differentiate between civilians and combatants.
Israel says its strikes are aimed at fighters violating the truce. Both Israel and Hamas have accused the other of violating the deal. Hamas again urged mediators on Saturday to pressure Israel to stop what it called ceasefire violations in Gaza.
