Gaza’s Health Ministry said on Monday that Israeli attacks killed 98 Palestinians and wounded 404 over the previous 24-hour period as relentless US-backed attacks continue amid a famine in the besieged Palestinian territory.
On top of the violent deaths, the Health Ministry said that it recorded another nine starvation deaths, including three children, due to the Israeli siege. “This brings the total number of victims of famine and malnutrition to 348, including 127 children,” the ministry said.
The Israeli military continued its heavy assault on Gaza City, where UN and US-backed hunger monitors have determined famine is taking place. Health officials told Reuters that at least 19 people, including women and children, were killed by Israeli airstrikes on Gaza City on Monday.
The Palestinian news agency WAFA reported that Israeli strikes on the Shati refugee camp west of Gaza City killed a pregnant woman and a child. Two boys were also reported killed by an Israeli attack on a tent on al-Nasr Street in the western part of the city.
Gaza City residents told Reuters that the IDF sent explosive-laden armored vehicles into the Sheikh Radwan neighborhood and blew them up, destroying homes and forcing more families to flee. The Israeli military also dropped leaflets on Gaza City, telling residents to flee to the south, as the IDF’s goal is to forcibly displace the entire civilian population of the city, which is estimated to be about 1 million people.
“People are confused, stay and die, or leave towards nowhere,” Sheikh Radwan resident Mohammad Abu Abdallah told Reuters. “It was a night of horror, explosions never stopped, and the drones never stopped hovering over the area. Many people quit their homes fearing for their lives, while others have no idea where to go.”
While ordering civilians to flee to the south, the IDF also continues to bomb and shoot Palestinians in central and southern Gaza. According to WAFA, the Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis received 11 bodies of Palestinians killed by Israeli forces on Monday. The news agency said that at least nine Palestinians were killed while attempting to get aid.
The Health Ministry said that it recorded a total of 46 aid seekers being killed and 239 being injured over the 24-hour period. The ministry also said that its violent death toll since October 7, 2023, has reached 63,557, and the number of wounded has climbed to 160,660. Studies have found that the ministry’s numbers are likely a significant undercount.
