On Thursday, Gaza health officials reported that the death toll from the escalating bomb attacks carried out by the Israeli military in response to Hamas’s October 7 assault has risen to roughly 3,800. The figure reflects the harrowing human cost of a conflict that has drawn international attention and sparked widespread concern about civilian safety in the Gaza Strip.
According to the Hamas-controlled health ministry, the updated tally stood at 3,785 fatalities, a figure that includes 1,524 children. The ministry also noted nearly 12,500 total casualties, with almost 4,000 among them being minors. These numbers are tied to Israeli strikes connected to Hamas’s incursion that killed about 1,400 people and led to the detention of more than 200 individuals. The data underscores the immense tragedy unfolding for families caught in the crossfire and for communities striving to endure amid the violence.
Officials attributed the ongoing violence to what they described as continuous Israeli assaults that have shattered Palestinian households, damaged settlements, and eroded essential infrastructure. They also accused Israel of obstructing medical evacuations by striking roads and limiting access to hospitals, thereby hampering relief efforts and endangering lives in urgent need of care.
The ministry’s statement asserted that Israeli actions have disrupted health services and resulted in preventable deaths. It highlighted that 44 healthcare workers were injured and 77 others harmed, and claimed that 23 ambulances were struck by Israeli forces. These claims are part of a broader narrative about the vulnerability of essential medical operations amid shifting front lines and contested supply routes.
According to the ministry, operations at 14 northern health centers were suspended due to power outages and dwindling fuel reserves, while four additional reserves remained offline because of what was described as direct strikes. The disruption has complicated the ability to provide care to large numbers of patients during a period of intensified need.
Hospitals in Gaza were described as operating with bed occupancy surpassing 150 percent, forcing many patients to sleep on floors and in corridors. Officials warned that medicines and fuel were in critically short supply across multiple departments, heightening the risk of mortality from treatable conditions and delaying essential procedures for those in urgent need.
The delay in delivering medical supplies was framed as a direct threat to lives, prompting calls for the international community to accelerate the distribution of emergency medical provisions to hospitals across the Strip. The appeal stressed the urgency of ensuring that frontline facilities receive the vaccines, anesthesia, analgesics, and lifesaving apparatus required to stabilize patients and sustain medical operations under extreme conditions.
There was a renewed appeal to safeguard medical equipment, hospitals, ambulances, and shelters for civilians who had to flee their homes as attacks continued. Protecting these assets is seen as vital to preserving a functioning health system and offering a refuge for the injured and displaced.
Earlier, a Palestinian Authority-affiliated health organization reported on its Telegram channel that 69 Palestinians died and about 1,300 were injured in clashes with Israeli security forces in the West Bank, signaling that the violence has affected multiple territories in the region and adding to the fragility of the broader humanitarian situation.
A spokesman for Gaza’s health ministry, Ashraf al-Qidra, condemned the ongoing violence, describing the attacks as ethnic cleansing in a report carried by the Hamas-aligned Palestinian newspaper Filastin. He added that repeated strikes on medical facilities posed a grave risk to the region’s healthcare system, including the alleged massacre at Al-Ahli hospital, which caused a large loss of life among patients, families, and refugees and intensified international alarm about the protection of civilians during hostilities.
Both Hamas and the Palestinian Authority have accused Israel of bombing the hospital facility, while Israeli officials contended that the center was struck by a projectile fired by Islamic Jihad. Across the region, governments and humanitarian groups condemned Israel’s role in the events, urging restraint and accountability while emphasizing the need to protect protected civilian spaces and guarantee the safe delivery of aid and medical services to those most in need.
United Nations agencies and various non-governmental organizations warned that Gaza’s humanitarian crisis is deepening, with access to food, water, and medical care increasingly constrained. On Wednesday, Israel announced a temporary opening to allow humanitarian aid from Egypt into the Strip, a move viewed by many as a potential relief measure, though practical challenges remain in distributing aid effectively amid security concerns and damaged infrastructure.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office warned that the commitment to allow aid would be breached if materials fell into Hamas hands. Following that warning, Egypt confirmed an agreement to open the Rafah crossing to facilitate humanitarian shipments into Gaza, signaling a collaborative effort to address the acute humanitarian needs while acknowledging the political sensitivities surrounding aid deliveries and security considerations.