Gaza hospitals receive 16 bodies over 48 hours, officials say
Gaza health officials said seven Palestinians were killed in recent Israeli attacks and nine bodies were recovered from rubble.
By James Whitfield · Staff Writer
2 min read
Hospitals in Gaza received 16 bodies over a 48-hour period, including seven Palestinians killed in recent Israeli attacks, according to Gaza’s Ministry of Health. The figures point to continued deadly incidents in the enclave despite a United States-brokered ceasefire agreed by Israel and Hamas in October.
The ministry said on Saturday that nine of the 16 bodies were recovered from the rubble of destroyed buildings. It also said 16 people were injured during the same period.
Gaza health officials did not give details on the circumstances of the deaths or injuries. The ministry said more victims remain trapped under rubble, while ambulance crews and civil defence teams have been unable to reach them.
Al Jazeera reported the ministry’s figures as displaced Palestinians continued living in tent camps, including in Deir al-Balah in central Gaza. The enclave has faced extensive destruction since Israel began its war there in October 2023.
Ceasefire under strain
Israel and Hamas agreed to the US-brokered ceasefire in October, and large-scale fighting has largely stopped, according to Al Jazeera. The outlet reported that Israeli attacks on Palestinians in Gaza have continued during the truce.
Gaza’s Ministry of Health said Israeli army violations of the ceasefire have killed 1,066 people and wounded 3,445 others since the truce began. The ministry added that the latest casualties brought the overall Palestinian death toll in Gaza since October 2023 to 73,090, with 173,550 people injured.
Al Jazeera reported that the Israeli military has also continued expanding areas under its control inside Gaza during the ceasefire and has issued forced displacement orders. In late May, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he had ordered the military to expand its control to more than 70 percent of the Gaza Strip, according to the outlet.
Second phase stalled
The ceasefire agreement called for the sides to move into a second phase after Hamas released the remaining captives covered by the first stage in exchange for Palestinians held in Israeli prisons, Al Jazeera reported.
That next phase was expected to include Hamas’s disarmament and a gradual withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza. Negotiations have been stalled for months, with Hamas’s disarmament and the extent of an Israeli withdrawal remaining the main sticking points, according to Al Jazeera.
The Ministry of Health’s latest update did not say when rescuers might be able to reach people still believed to be beneath destroyed buildings. It also did not specify where in Gaza the most recent deaths and injuries occurred.
This story draws on original reporting from Al Jazeera.