Gaza death toll from Israeli war passes 64,700 as 7 more Palestinians die of starvation

At least 64,718 Palestinians have been killed in Israel’s genocidal war on the Gaza Strip since October 2023, as seven more people, including a child, died of starvation in the besieged enclave, the Health Ministry said on Thursday.

A ministry statement said that 72 bodies were brought to hospitals in the last 24 hours, while 356 people were injured, taking the number of injuries to 163,859 in the Israeli onslaught.

“Many victims are still trapped under the rubble and on the roads as rescuers are unable to reach them,” it added.

The ministry also noted that nine Palestinians were killed and over 87 others injured by Israeli army fire while trying to get humanitarian aid in the last 24 hours, bringing the total number of Palestinians killed while seeking aid to 2,465, with over 17,948 others wounded since May 27.

The ministry said that seven more Palestinians, including a child, died of malnutrition and starvation in the last 24 hours. This brought the famine-linked death toll since October 2023 to 411 people, including 142 children.

According to the ministry, 133 of the deaths, 27 of them children, occurred after the UN-backed hunger monitoring system Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) formally declared Gaza a famine zone last month.

Since March 2, Israeli authorities have completely closed all Gaza border crossings, pushing the territory’s 2.4 million population into famine.

The Israeli army resumed its attacks on the Gaza Strip on March 18 and has since killed 12,170 people and injured 51,818 others, shattering a ceasefire and prisoner exchange agreement that took hold in January.

Last November, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.