Gaza Death Toll Surpasses 45,000 Amid Ongoing Conflict

The death toll in the Gaza Strip from the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas militants has tragically surpassed 45,000, The Associated Press reports, citing Palestinian health officials.

The Gaza Health Ministry reported an additional 52 deaths in the past 24 hours, bringing the total to 45,028 fatalities and 106,962 injuries since the war began on October 7, 2023.

The Ministry does not differentiate between civilian and combatant casualties, but has previously stated that over half of the victims are women and children. The Israeli military claims to have killed over 17,000 militants, though it has not provided supporting evidence. The Ministry warns that the actual death toll is likely significantly higher, as thousands of bodies remain buried under rubble in inaccessible areas. The current death toll represents approximately 2% of Gaza’s pre-war population of roughly 2.3 million.

Among the recent casualties were ten individuals, including a family of four, killed in an Israeli airstrike late Sunday in Gaza City’s Shijaiyah neighborhood. Rescuers recovered the bodies from the rubble of a targeted house.

Israel maintains that Hamas’s presence within civilian areas is responsible for the civilian casualties. However, human rights groups and Palestinian officials contend that Israel has not taken sufficient precautions to minimize civilian deaths.

Separately, at least 13 people, including six children and two women, were killed in a Sunday airstrike on a school in Khan Younis. The Israeli military claimed the strike targeted a Hamas command center located within the school compound, a claim they did not substantiate. A separate strike on a house that day initially reported as part of the same attack was later determined to be a separate incident.

Another airstrike in Nuseirat refugee camp killed a Palestinian journalist working for Al Jazeera and three civil defense workers, including the agency’s local head. The Israeli military claimed the journalist was a member of Islamic Jihad, an allegation denied by his colleagues. The civil defense also denied the presence of militants at the targeted site. The International Federation of Journalists has reported the deaths of at least 138 media professionals since the conflict began.

The war began with a Hamas attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023, resulting in the deaths of approximately 1,200 Israelis, mostly civilians, and the abduction of hundreds more. Israel subsequently launched a large-scale military operation in Gaza. While many hostages were released during a brief ceasefire, around 100 remain unaccounted for in Gaza, with concerns that at least a third may be deceased.