DaysofPal – The death toll in Gaza has surged once again as Israel’s military intensifies its air and ground assaults, leaving devastation across residential neighborhoods and refugee shelters. The Ministry of Health in Gaza reported on Saturday that since October 7, 2023, at least 64,368 Palestinians have been killed and 162,367 injured in Israel’s ongoing genocide.
In the past 24 hours alone, 70 people were killed and 422 wounded, including 36 deaths in Gaza City and the northern Strip. Another 23 Palestinians were killed and 143 wounded while waiting for desperately needed aid, highlighting the lethal consequences of Israel’s blockade. The toll of those killed by starvation rose to 382 after six new deaths were recorded.
Medical sources confirmed that 30 people, including seven children, were killed in simultaneous airstrikes on residential apartments and tents for displaced families in Gaza City. With hospitals overwhelmed, images circulating online showed wounded civilians lying on the floors of Shifa Hospital due to a shortage of beds. Ambulances also transported dozens of casualties to the Red Crescent’s field hospital.
Israeli bombardment expanded to southern and eastern Gaza City, striking Zeitoun, Sbeira, and Shujaiya, neighborhoods already reeling under artillery fire and advancing ground forces. Six bodies were recovered from Zeitoun and Sbeira, while a targeted strike on a vehicle in Sheikh Radwan killed four people, according to emergency services.
The Gaza Health Ministry warned that massacres have become routine, part of what Palestinians describe as Israel’s campaign to forcibly displace nearly one million residents from Gaza City ahead of full occupation.
Israeli occupation forces themselves said they now control about 40 percent of the city and vowed to intensify operations in the coming days with the participation of reserve forces. The army has openly threatened to target more high-rise buildings, claiming they serve as Hamas infrastructure.
Famine and forced relocation are also tightening the noose that encircles Gaza’s civilian population. Thousands are fleeing neighborhoods under fire, moving west and south despite overcrowded shelters and deadly attacks on “evacuation routes.” Many families refuse evacuation orders, fearing that leaving their homes will only expose them to hunger and further bombardment.
The relentless escalation has sparked international alarm. UN experts condemned the atrocities and called for the UN General Assembly to convene an emergency session before September 17. In a joint statement, they urged immediate action to lift the blockade and enforce a ceasefire, stressing that “silence and inaction are unacceptable in the face of Israel’s crimes” and warning of an even greater catastrophe if decisive steps are not taken.
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