Over 60,000 Palestinians have died in 21-month Gaza war
Over 60,000 Palestinians have been killed in the 21-month Israel-Hamas war, Gaza's Health Ministry said Tuesday.
The ministry, part of the Hamas-run government, said the death toll has climbed to to 60,034, with another 145,870 people wounded since Hamas' Oct. 7, 2023, attack.
It did not say how many were civilians or militants, but has said women and children make up around half the dead.
The ministry is staffed by medical professionals. The United Nations and other independent experts view its figures as the most reliable count of casualties.
Israel's offensive has destroyed vast areas of Gaza, displaced around 90% of the population and caused to a catastrophic humanitarian crisis, with experts warning of famine.
At least 77 Palestinians killed in past day
As international organizations warn of a "worst-case scenario of famine," Israel continued to strike the Gaza Strip, killing at least 77 Palestinians in the past day, according to local hospitals. More than half were killed while attempting to access aid, hospitals said, and includes a rising toll from a deadly incident on Monday as people attempted to access aid from a truck convoy passing through the southern Gaza Strip.
Local hospitals said they received the bodies of an additional 33 people who were killed by gunfire around an aid convoy in southern Gaza on Monday, bringing the total from the single incident to 58. The Israeli military did not comment on the shooting.
Israel says it only targets militants and takes extraordinary measures to avoid harming civilians. It blames civilian deaths on Hamas because the militants operate in populated areas. The military said it targeted Hamas military infrastructure over the past day including rocket launchers, weapons storage facilities and tunnels.
An additional 14 Palestinians were killed while attempting to access aid near the American and Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Fund site in central Gaza, according to local hospitals.
Neither GHF nor the Israeli military commented on the shooting. Israel's military has said in the past it only fires warning shots if troops feel threatened and GHF has said their contractors haven't fired at civilians.
Air strikes also targeted tents hosting displaced people in the central city of Nuseirat, killing 30 people, including 12 children and 14 women, according to Al-Awda hospital.
The strikes come as international organizations continue to warn about the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza, which has teetered on the brink of famine for two years. Recent developments have "dramatically worsened" the situation, according to a report by the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification, or IPC.
Israel rejects claims of 'starvation policies'
Israeli foreign minister Gideon Saar on Tuesday rejected claims of "starvation policies" in Gaza and said the focus on starvation is a "distorted campaign of international pressure."
"This pressure is directly sabotaging the chances for a ceasefire and hostage deal, it is only pushing towards military escalation by hardening Hamas's stance," he said.
The U.S. and Israel have both recalled their negotiating teams over the past week as negotiations seem to have stalled.
Hamas-led militants killed some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, in the attack that sparked the war, and abducted another 251. They are still holding 50 captives, around 20 believed to be alive, after most of the rest were released in ceasefires or other deals.
The war took a major turn in early March when Israel imposed a complete 2 ½ month blockade, barring the entry of all food, medicine, fuel and other goods. Weeks later, Israel ended a ceasefire with a surprise bombardment and began seizing large areas of Gaza, measures it said were aimed at pressuring Hamas to release more hostages.
At least 8,867 Palestinians have been killed since then.
Israel eased the blockade in May, but U.N. agencies say it hasn't allowed nearly enough aid to enter and that they have struggled to deliver it because of Israeli restrictions and the breakdown of law and order. An alternative Israeli-backed system run by an American contractor has been marred by violence and controversy.
Gutted health system, daily strikes and a hunger crisis
Near-daily Israeli strikes have hit schools, shelters, hospitals and other civilian buildings, killing men, women and children. The military usually says it was targeting militants hiding out among civilians, while occasionally acknowledging mistakes.
Israel's offensive and its blockade have also gutted Gaza's health system, with several hospitals having shut down and others only partially functioning as they receive waves of war-wounded.
The hunger crisis has also taken its toll. The World Health Organization says more than 60 people have died this month from malnutrition-related causes, including 24 children under five. Overall, 88 children died of causes related to malnutrition since the start of the war, and 58 adults died this month also malnutrition-related causes, according to the Gaza Health Ministry.
During hunger crises, people can die from malnutrition or from common illnesses or injuries that the body is not strong enough to fight. The ministry doesn't include hunger-related deaths in its overall toll.
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