DaysofPal- The ongoing Israeli genocide on Gaza has killed almost 19,000 children and more than 62,000 Palestinians overall, Gaza authorities said on Tuesday, as Israeli bombardments intensified on Gaza City despite a ceasefire proposal that Hamas has accepted.
The Gaza Government Media Office reported that 18,885 children have died since the Israeli occupation launched its genocidal war nearly two years ago.
The grim toll underscores the warnings of UN agencies that no place is safe for children in Gaza, where starvation and disease are spreading due to the Israeli blockade of food and medical supplies.
The United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) said schools hosting hundreds of thousands of people have become targets of Israeli strikes, turning them into places of death.
UNRWA, citing UNICEF data, said that in the past five months alone, an average of 540 children have been killed each month after Israel unilaterally ended a previous truce and resumed attacks.
Among the latest victims was 12-year-old Amna al-Mufti, killed while carrying water for her family, in scenes captured by Al Jazeera that also showed her father’s grief.
On Tuesday, health officials said at least 51 Palestinians were killed, including eight civilians shot while seeking food aid near U.S. and Israeli-backed distribution sites.
Rights groups say nearly 2,000 people have died at such aid points since May.
Israeli strikes also hit tents sheltering displaced families in Khan Younis and Deir el-Balah, killing at least a dozen people.
Furthermore, in Gaza City, air raids on the Zeitoun neighborhood killed four and destroyed residential blocks, while tanks advanced into Sabra and southern districts, demolishing homes and firing shells into crowded areas.
Local residents described relentless bombardment. “Tanks are firing shells and drones are shooting bullets and missiles,” said Hussein al-Dairi, 44, from Sabra.
“We heard Hamas agreed to a truce, but the occupation is escalating the war against us, the civilians.” He added.
Ceasefire proposal in limbo
Efforts to halt the fighting gained momentum last week, with mediators Qatar and Egypt confirming that Hamas accepted a 60-day truce proposal.
Israeli officials said they are studying Hamas’s response, but local media reported that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s far-right government is dissatisfied with a limited deal and may demand the release of all 50 captives believed to remain in Gaza, 20 of them alive.
As the Israeli Attacks rage, Gaza’s Health Ministry reported a surge in deaths from hunger.
Since June, 154 adults and 112 children have died of malnutrition, including three in the past 24 hours alone, as aid agencies warn that famine looms over the enclave’s 2.2 million residents under the suffocating Israeli blockade.
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