In the last 108 days, Israeli army attacks have killed 11,000 children and 7,500 women in the Gaza Strip, said the media office of the government in Gaza on Monday, Anadolu Agency reports.
In the Strip, 7,000 people, 70 per cent of whom are women and children, are still under debris or missing from Israeli attacks, it said, citing a host of new figures to try to convey the depth of loss and destruction suffered by Gaza.
The number of bodies reaching hospitals has surpassed 25,900, while 63,000 people have been injured since last 7 October, when Israel’s relentless Gaza campaign began after a cross-border raid by Palestinian group, Hamas, that killed some 1,200 people, according to Israel.
However, since then, it has been revealed by Haaretz that helicopters and tanks of the Israeli army had, in fact, killed many of the 1,139 soldiers and civilians claimed by Israel to have been killed by the Palestinian Resistance.
Some 70,000 houses have been completely destroyed in Israeli attacks, and 290,000 houses were made uninhabitable.
On Israeli attacks on the health care sector, the statement said 337 health care workers and 45 civilian defence officials have so far been killed. Since 7 October, a total of 119 journalists have lost their lives in Israeli attacks in Gaza.
Attacks threw health care in crisis, endangering lives
Israeli forces detained 99 healthcare workers and 10 journalists, and 2 million people were displaced in the Gaza Strip.
Pointing to the inhumane conditions in crowded shelters where Palestinian displaced seek refuge, the statement said 400,000 cases of infectious diseases and more than 8,000 cases of Hepatitis A have been detected as a result of Israel’s forced displacement.
Some 60,000 pregnant women in Gaza face critical risks due to the inability to provide health care, while 350,000 individuals with chronic illnesses are facing critical risks due to the lack of medication.
The Israeli army destroyed 140 government facilities as well as 99 schools and universities, while partially damaging 295 schools and universities.
Outside Gaza, there are 11,000 injured people who need treatment, and 10,000 cancer patients are facing the risk of death due to inadequate health care.
The statement said the Israeli army damaged 253 mosques and also caused the destruction of three churches.
Israel targeted 150 health care institutions in Gaza, rendered 53 health centres and 30 hospitals inoperative and made 122 ambulances unusable. Israel also targeted Palestine’s cultural heritage, destroying 200 historical and cultural assets in Gaza.
The statement further decried how the Israeli army has launched more than 65,000 tons of explosives at Gaza since 7 October.
First publish in Middle East Monitor 22 January 2024
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