Over 60,000 Palestinians have died in the 21-month Israel-Hamas war, Gaza's Health Ministry says
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.
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.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Politico
29 minutes ago
- Politico
Israeli fire kills at least 18 in Gaza, and US envoy visits hostage family protest
In response to questions about several eyewitness accounts of violence at the northernmost of the Israeli-backed American contractor's four facilities, GHF said 'nothing (happened) at or near our sites.' The episode came a day after U.S. officials visited one site and U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee called the distribution 'an incredible feat.' International outrage has mounted as the group's efforts to deliver aid to hunger-stricken Gaza have been marred by violence and controversy. 'We weren't close to them (the troops) and there was no threat,' Abed Salah, a man in his 30s who was among the crowds close to the GHF site near Netzarim corridor, said. 'I escaped death miraculously.' The danger facing aid seekers in Gaza has compounded what international hunger experts this week called a 'worst-case scenario of famine' in the besieged enclave. Israel's nearly 22-month military offensive against Hamas has shattered security in the territory of some 2 million Palestinians and made it nearly impossible to deliver food safely to starving people. Seven Palestinians died of malnutrition-related causes in the Gaza Strip over the past 24 hours, the territory's health ministry said on Saturday. They include a child, it said in a statement, bringing total deaths among children from causes related to malnutrition in Gaza to 93 since the war began. The ministry said 76 adults in Gaza have died of malnutrition-related causes since late June, when it started counting deaths among adults. From May 27 to July 31, 859 people were killed near GHF sites, according to a United Nations report published Thursday. Hundreds more have been killed along the routes of food convoys. GHF says its armed contractors have only used pepper spray or fired warning shots to prevent deadly crowding. Israel's military has said it has only fired warning shots at people who approach its forces, though on Friday said it was working to make the routes under its control safer. Israel and GHF have said that the toll has been exaggerated.
Yahoo
4 hours ago
- Yahoo
Eight people seeking food among at least 12 killed by Israeli fire in Gaza
Hospitals in Gaza reported the killing of more than a dozen people, eight of them food-seekers, by Israeli fire on Saturday as Palestinians endured severe risks in their search for food amid airdrops and restrictions on overland aid delivery. Near a Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) distribution site, Yahia Youssef, who had come to seek aid on Saturday morning, described a panicked scene now grimly familiar. After helping carry out three people wounded by gunshots, he said he looked around and saw many others lying on the ground bleeding. 'It's the same daily episode,' Mr Youssef said. In response to questions about several witness accounts of violence at the northernmost of the Israeli-backed American contractor's four sites, the GHF media office said 'nothing (happened) at or near our sites'. The episode came a day after US officials visited one site and the US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee called GHF's distribution 'an incredible feat'. International outrage has mounted as the group's efforts to deliver aid to hunger-stricken Gaza have been marred by violence and controversy. 'We weren't close to them (the troops) and there was no threat,' Abed Salah, a man in his 30s who was among the crowds close to the GHF site near Netzarim corridor, said. 'I escaped death miraculously.' The danger facing aid seekers in Gaza has compounded what international hunger experts this week called a 'worst-case scenario of famine' in the besieged enclave. Israel's near 22-month military offensive against Hamas has shattered security in the territory of some 2.0 million Palestinians and made it nearly impossible to deliver food safely to starving people. From May 27 to July 31, 859 people were killed in the vicinity of GHF sites, according to a United Nations report published on Thursday. Hundreds more have been killed along the routes of food convoys. Israel and GHF have said they have only fired warning shots and that the toll has been exaggerated. Health officials reported that Israeli airstrikes and gunfire killed at least 18 Palestinians on Saturday, including three whose bodies were transported from the vicinity of a distribution site to a central Gaza hospital along with 36 others who were wounded. Officials said 10 of Saturday's casualties were killed by strikes in central and southern Gaza. Nasser Hospital said it received the bodies of five people killed in two separate strikes on tents sheltering displaced people. The dead include two brothers and a relative, who were killed when a strike hit their tent close to a main thoroughfare in Khan Younis. Meanwhile, in Tel Aviv, families of Israeli hostages protested and urged Israel's government to push harder for the release of their loved ones, including those shown in footage released by militant groups earlier this week. US President Donald Trump's special envoy Steve Witkoff joined them a day after visiting Gaza and a week after walking away from ceasefire talks in Qatar, blaming Hamas's intransigence and pledging to find other ways to free hostages and make Gaza safe. Of the 251 hostages who were abducted when Hamas led an attack on southern Israel on October 7 2023, about 20 are believed to be alive in Gaza. Hamas and Islamic Jihad, the second-largest militant group in Gaza, released separate videos of individual hostages this week, triggering outrage among hostage families and Israeli society. The war in Gaza began when Hamas attacked southern Israel on October 7 2023, killing about 1,200 people, mostly civilians. Israel's retaliatory offensive has killed more than 60,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza's health ministry, which does not distinguish between militants and civilians and operates under the Hamas government. The UN and other international organisations see it as the most reliable source of data on casualties.
Yahoo
5 hours ago
- Yahoo
Defining famine: the complex process behind Gaza's hunger crisis
Despite mounting international concern over widespread hunger in Gaza, no official famine has been declared in the territory – highlighting the complexities of determining a country's famine status. The World Food Programme (WFP), Unicef and the Food and Agriculture Organisation warned this week that time is running out, with Gaza "on the brink of a full-scale famine". "We need to flood Gaza with large-scale food aid, immediately and without obstruction, and keep it flowing each and every day to prevent mass starvation," WFP executive director Cindy McCain said in a joint statement from the agencies. Images of severely undernourished children have prompted outrage. According to data from the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), one in five children under the age of five in Gaza City is now malnourished. The Hamas-controlled Gaza Ministry of Health has reported 147 deaths from hunger, including 88 children, since the Israel-Hamas conflict erupted following the 7 October 2023 terror attack. However, there has been no official determination or declaration of famine, leading to questions over whether one exists. Determining a famine The United Nations uses a tool called the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) to measure hunger. Created in 2004, the IPC is used by 21 agencies, including the WFP and Unicef. It sets out five levels of food insecurity, with Phase 5 meaning famine or catastrophe. Three things must happen at the same time for famine to be declared: At least 2 people per 10,000 (or 4 per 10,000 children) die daily of starvation, disease and malnutrition At least 20 percent of households face extreme food shortages At least 30 percent of children suffer from acute malnutrition Even if those thresholds appear to be met, an independent review committee must confirm it. This panel includes experts in nutrition, health and food security. Only then can a formal declaration be made – usually by the government of the affected area or the UN. "It's a very high bar and the nature of the process is that if the data aren't there, you say it's not a famine," Alex de Waal, executive director of the World Peace Foundation at Tufts University, told the ABC. "It has no legal force. The word 'famine' has no meaning in law." As of June 2025, Sudan is the only country currently experiencing famine, according to the IPC. First confirmed in North Darfur's Zamzam camp for displaced people in August, 2024, famine has since spread to 10 areas of the country, with another 17 at risk. More than 110 aid and human rights groups denounce Gaza 'mass starvation' Data collection challenges The IPC puts Gaza at Phase 4 (emergency) across the territory, with half a million people projected to reach Phase 5 by September. Earlier this month, the IPC issued an alert warning that the "worst-case scenario of famine is currently playing out," though this falls short of an official classification. Collecting the necessary data to determine whether a country is officially suffering from famine requires the systematic surveying of populations to measure malnutrition rates and mortality. Israel's partial blockade on delivery of humanitarian aid to Gaza has not only contributed to the risk of famine, the conflict and restrictions on international media have made gathering data near-impossible, aid agencies say. "Our colleagues in Gaza right now are trying to work under bombardment with no guarantee of safety," Scott Paul, director of peace and security at Oxfam America, told the ABC. "Aid workers conducting assessments face the same dire conditions as the general population, including food shortages and restricted movement." Sudan government rejects UN-backed famine declaration Politics has also affected how famine is assessed. Doctors Without Borders has accused Israel of using 'deliberate starvation' as a weapon of war. Israeli officials have pushed back on that, questioning the accuracy of the figures and suggesting the viral images of emaciated children are misleading. "In most cases, their extreme malnutrition is due to underlying medical conditions rather than food scarcity alone," a spokesperson for the Israeli army told Le Point magazine. Israel also argues that previous IPC warnings proved inaccurate, noting that predictions of imminent famine in March 2024, and then again in March of this year, failed to materialise. By June, the World Health Organization had recorded 32 hunger-related deaths – far below projections. Even so, many aid groups say action should not be delayed just because a formal famine has not been declared. In Somalia in 2012, around half of the 250,000 famine deaths happened before the official announcement was made. "The importance of taking action before famine is declared cannot be overstated," Paul said, adding that severely malnourished individuals may be harmed by certain foods if distribution is not carefully managed.
