Gaza death toll from Israel-Hamas war tops 44,000, Palestinian officials say

DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — The death toll in the Gaza Strip from the 13 month war between Israel and Hamas has surpassed 44,000, local health officials said Thursday.

Gaza’s health ministry does not distinguish between civilians and combatants in its numbers, but said more than half of the deaths were women and children. The Israeli military says it has killed more than 17,000 militants, without providing evidence.

The Ministry of Health said 44,056 people had been killed and 104,268 wounded since the start of the war. The real toll is said to be higher, as thousands of bodies are buried under rubble or in areas where medics cannot access.

The war began when Hamas-led militants stormed southern Israel on October 7, 2023, killing an estimated 1,200 people, mostly civilians. and kidnapping another 250. About 100 hostages are still in Gaza, at least a third of whom are believed to be dead. Most of the others were released during last year’s ceasefire.

In Lebanon, the death toll from Israeli strikes and fighting has exceeded 3,580, with more than 15,000 injured, according to Lebanon’s Ministry of Health. At least 51 people were killed in Israeli attacks on towns and villages in Lebanon on Thursday.

The Israeli Offensive in Gaza caused heavy destruction over wide areas of coastal territory, causing many to wonder when or how it will ever be rebuilt. About 90 percent of the population of 2.3 million people has been displaced, often multiple times, and hundreds of thousands live in squalid tent camps with little food, water or basic services.

Israel says it is trying to avoid injuring civilians and blames Hamas for their deaths because the militants operate in residential areas, where they have built tunnels, rocket launchers and other military infrastructure.

Palestinian officials and rights groups accuse Israeli forces of war crimes and crimes against humanityand the supreme court of the United Nations is given the allegations of genocide brought by South Africa. The Israeli government strongly denies the allegations, accusing critics of being biased against them.

In recent weeks, the amount of humanitarian aid entering Gaza has dropped, prompting the United States to threaten to cut military support for Israel. before giving backciting limited progress. Experts have warned that the isolated, war-ravaged northern Gaza they could already face starvation.

The United States, Egypt and Qatar have spent months trying to negotiate a cease-fire agreement under which Hamas would release the remaining hostages in exchange for an end to the war. Those discussions stopped during the summerwith Israel and Hamas each accusing the other of making unacceptable demands.

US President-elect Donald Trump promised to end the wars in the Middle East without saying how. His previous administration provided unprecedented support for Israel and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s hard-line policies toward the Palestinians.

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Khaled reported from Cairo.

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Wafaa Shurafa and Fatma Khaled, Associated Press