The number of people killed in Gaza in the 14-month Israel-Hamas war has now exceeded 45,000, Palestinian health officials say.
The Gaza health ministry does not distinguish between civilians and combatants in its count but said that more than half of the fatalities are women and children.
The ministry said at least 45,028 people have been killed and 106,962 others have been wounded since the conflict began on 7 October 2023, when Hamas militants crossed into Israel and massacred about 1,200 people.
It is said the real death toll in Gaza is higher because thousands of bodies remain buried under the rubble or in areas that medics cannot access.
The Israeli military has claimed, without evidence, to have killed 17,000 militants.
In Gaza city overnight, an Israeli strike killed at least 10 people, including a family of four, Palestinian medics said.
The strike was said to have taken place in Gaza City’s eastern Shijaiyah neighbourhood.
A separate strike on a school on Sunday in the southern city of Khan Younis killed at least 13 people, including six children and two women, according to Nasser Hospital.
Palestinians sift through the aftermath of an Israeli strike. Pic: Reuters/Mohammed Salem
The attacks were part of Israel’s war in Gaza that erupted after Hamas militants led an assault into southern Israel, killing around 1,200 people and taking about 250 hostages.
Most of the hostages have been released but around 100 remain in Gaza – a third of whom are believed to be dead.
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The latest war has been by far the deadliest round of fighting between Israel and Hamas, with the death toll amounting to around 2% of Gaza’s entire pre-war population of 2.3 million.
Israel points the finger of blame at Hamas for the civilian death toll, saying the killings are the group’s fault because it operates in civilian areas in the densely populated territory.
Rights groups and Palestinians say Israel repeatedly fails to take sufficient precautions to avoid civilian deaths when it attacks populated areas.
The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) says it “does everything possible to limit civilian casualties in Gaza”.
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