Gaza death toll nears 60,000 as Israelis demand hostage deal with Hamas

Daily Mirror

a day ago

Hopes for an imminent Gaza ceasefire fade as deaths of Palestinians pass 58,000 and Israeli military launches devastating assault on the north of the Strip, forcing locals to flee further south
Gaza's horror toll has shot past the bloody milestone of 58,000 dead after claims Israeli strikes killed more than fifty Palestinians on Sunday. Across the Palestinian Strip at least 28 locals died from Israeli attacks by Monday midday and there was little sign of a peace breakthrough.
The dead included six children and hopes for a ceasefire taking place soon is dwindling as a major Israeli assault on Northern Gaza is underway. Local witnesses reported several assault helicopters with troops landed in the area and loud explosions rang out across the Strip as troops forced locals to flee south. It is believed Israel and Hamas are no closer to a breakthrough in indirect talks meant to pause the war and free some Israeli hostages.
‌
‌
The major sticking point has emerged over Israeli troops' deployment during a ceasefire and Israel says it will end the war only once Hamas surrenders, disarms and goes into exile. Hamas refuses to comply but has said it is willing to free all the remaining 50 hostages, about 20 said to be alive, in exchange for the war's end and an Israeli withdrawal.
Angry families of some hostages demonstrated outside Netanyahu's office on Sunday evening. John Polin, father of Hersh Goldberg-Poli, a hostage killed in Gaza, said: "The overwhelming majority of the people in Israel have spoken loudly and clearly. We want to do a deal, even at the cost of ending this war, and we want to do it now.'
‌
The UN's children's agency UNICEF says more than 5,800 children were diagnosed with malnutrition in Gaza in June, including more than 1,000 children in severe condition. In central Gaza, officials at Al-Awda Hospital said it received ten bodies after an Israeli strike on a water collection point in nearby Nuseirat. Among the dead were six children.
Ramadan Nassar, who lives in the area, said around 20 children and 14 adults had been lined up to get water. He said Palestinians walk some 1.2 miles to fetch water from the area. The I sraeli military s aid it was targeting a militant but a technical error made its munitions fall "dozens of meters from the target." In Nuseirat, a small boy leaned over a body bag to say goodbye to a friend.
‌
Resident Raafat Fanouna said as some people went over the rubble with sticks and bare hands. He added: 'There is no safe place.' Separately, health officials said an Israeli strike hit a group of citizens walking in the street on Sunday afternoon in central Gaza City, killing 11 people and injuring around 30 others.
Dr. Ahmed Qandil, who specializes in general surgery, was among those killed, Gaza's Health Ministry said. Qandil had been on his way to Al-Ahli Arab Baptist Hospital. In the central town of Zawaida, an Israeli strike on a home killed nine, including two women and three children. Israel's military confirmed it hit more than 150 targets over the past 24 hours, including what it called weapons storage facilities, missile launchers and sniping posts.
‌
The Hamas-led attack on Oct. 7, 2023, that sparked the war killed some 1,200 people and abducted 251. Israel's Energy Minister Eli Cohen told right-wing Channel 14 that his ministry will not help rebuild infrastructure in Gaza. He said: "Gaza should remain an island of ruins to the next decades.'
In the West Bank, which has seen violence between Israeli troops and Palestinians and Israeli settlers' attacks on Palestinians, funerals were held for a Palestinian-American and a Palestinian friend. The Palestinian Health Ministry said Musallet, from Florida, had been beaten by Israeli settlers. Diana Halum, a cousin, said the attack occurred on his family's land.
Musallet's friend, Mohammed al-Shalabi, was shot in the chest, the ministry said. Israel's military has said Palestinians hurled rocks at Israelis in the area on Friday, lightly wounding two people and setting off a larger confrontation.
Their bodies were carried through the streets on Sunday as mourners waved Palestinian flags and chanted, "God is great." Musallet's family has said it wants the U.S. State Department to investigate his death and hold the settlers accountable.