GAZA: The health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza Strip reported on Monday that at least 35,091 Palestinians, mostly women and children, have been killed in the territory during more than seven months of relentless Israeli bombardment.
The toll includes at least 57 deaths over the past 24 hours, the health ministry said in a statement, adding that 78,827 people have been injured in the Gaza Strip since October 7.
Meanwhile, Israeli forces have intensified their offensive by pushing deep into the northern edge of Gaza. Israeli forces pushed deep into the ruins of Gaza’s northern edge on Monday to recapture an area where they had claimed to have defeated Hamas months ago. Meanwhile, at the opposite end of the enclave, Israeli tanks and troops pushed across a highway into Rafah.
Amid the intensified fighting, hundreds of thousands of Palestinians have been forced to flee once again, seeking refuge from the relentless bombardment. In Jabalia, Gaza’s largest refugee camp, tank shells struck at the heart of the district, with air strikes decimating clusters of residential buildings.
Meanwhile, aid groups warn that a humanitarian crisis could sharply worsen as Israel intensifies relentless bombardment. As the violence rages on, the Gaza health ministry issued a stark warning, declaring that the medical system is on the brink of collapse due to fuel shortages crippling generators and ambulances.
In Rafah, near the border with Egypt, Israeli airstrikes and ground bombardments intensified, leading to further civilian casualties. Residents reported a surge in violence, with tanks cutting off vital routes and forcing more evacuations from the already battered city.
The assault on Rafah has sparked a diplomatic rift between Israel and its main ally, the United States. Washington, for the first time since the conflict began, has put certain weapons shipments on hold, insisting that Israel must ensure the protection of civilians in its operations.
The Israeli bombardment has laid waste to the coastal enclave and caused a deep humanitarian crisis, with the Gaza health ministry warning that the medical system is on the verge of collapse due to a shortage of fuel to power generators and ambulances.
Palestinian health officials on Monday said they had so far recovered 20 bodies of Palestinians killed in the overnight air strikes on Jabalia, while dozens were injured.
At the opposite end of Gaza in Rafah, against the border fence with Egypt, Israel stepped up aerial and ground bombardments on the eastern areas of the city, killing people in an air strike on a house.
UNRWA, the main United Nations aid agency in Gaza, estimated that about 360,000 people had fled the southern city since the Israeli military gave its first evacuation order a week ago.
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