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Palestinian Arabs

Gaza Death Toll Rises as Israel's Military Action Escalates

Strategic Insights

— 2 min read

At least 38 Palestinians were killed overnight and into Wednesday in the Gaza Strip while seeking aid from United Nations convoys and sites run by an Israeli-backed American contractor, according to local health officials. The Israeli military said it had fired warning shots when crowds approached its forces. Another 25 people, including several women and children, were killed in Israeli airstrikes, according to local hospitals in Gaza. The military said it only targets Hamas militants. The latest deaths came as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was expected to announce further military action - and possibly plans for Israel to fully reoccupy Gaza.

Key Takeaways:

  • At least 38 Palestinians were killed overnight in the Gaza Strip while seeking aid from UN convoys and Israeli-backed contractors.
  • 25 people, including several women and children, were killed in Israeli airstrikes, according to local hospitals in Gaza.
  • The Israeli military said it only targets Hamas militants, but experts say Israel's ongoing military offensive and blockade are pushing the territory of some two million Palestinians into famine.
  • A new UN report found that only 1.5% of Gaza's cropland is accessible and undamaged.
  • Israel's air and ground war has destroyed nearly all of Gaza's food production capabilities, leaving its people reliant on international aid.
  • Four more malnutrition-related deaths were recorded in Gaza, bringing the total to 193 people, including 96 children, since the war began in October 2023.
  • Israeli far-right activists have repeatedly sought to halt aid from entering Gaza.
  • Israeli settlers blocked roads and hurled stones at a convoy of four trucks carrying aid bound for Gaza after they drove across the border into the Israeli-occupied West Bank.

Statistics:

  • At least 38 Palestinians were killed in the Gaza Strip overnight.
  • 25 people, including several women and children, were killed in Israeli airstrikes in Gaza City.
  • 28 Palestinians died in the Morag Corridor, an Israeli military zone in southern Gaza.
  • 4 people were killed in the Teina area on a route leading to a site in southern Gaza run by the Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF).
  • 6 people were killed near a GHF site in central Gaza.
  • Just 8.6% of Gaza's cropland is still accessible following sweeping Israeli evacuation orders in recent months.
  • Just 1.5% of Gaza's cropland is accessible and undamaged.
  • 193 people, including 96 children, have died of malnutrition-related causes since the war began in October 2023.

Sources:

  • Local health officials in Gaza
  • The Israeli military
  • The UN's Food and Agriculture Organization and the UN satellite centre
  • The Gaza Health Ministry
  • The Associated Press (76271063)
  • EYAD BABA/AFP via GETTY IMAGES

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