Number of Palestinians killed in Israel’s war on Gaza passes 60,000

Gaza. Image: Oxfam

More than 60,000 Palestinians have been killed in the 21-month war between Israel and Hamas, Gaza’s Health Ministry said.

The ministry, part of the Hamas-run government, said the death toll has climbed to 60,034, with another 145,870 people wounded since the Hamas attack on October 7 2023.

It did not say how many were civilians or militants, but has said women and children make up around half of 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 a catastrophic humanitarian crisis, with experts warning of famine.

“Worst case scenario”

As international organisations warn of a “worst-case scenario of famine”, Israel continued to strike the Gaza Strip, killing at least 70 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 seven Palestinians were killed while attempting to access aid near the American and Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Fund (GHF) site in central Gaza, according to local hospitals.

Neither GHF nor the Israeli military commented on the shooting, but the Israeli military has said in the past it only fires warning shots if troops feel threatened and GHF has said their contractors have not 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.

Condemnation

The strikes come as international organisations 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 (IPC).

The war took a major turn in early March when Israel imposed a 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 UN agencies say it has not 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.