Palestinian death toll surpasses 70,000 since war began, with more than 300 killed after ceasefire: Reports

The Palestinian death toll has surpassed 70,000 since the Israel-Hamas war began, Gaza’s Health Ministry said Saturday, as a hospital reported that Israeli fire killed two Palestinian children in the south of the territory.

The toll has continued to increase since the latest ceasefire took effect on October 10. Israel continues to carry out strikes in response to what it has described as violations of the truce, while bodies from earlier in the conflict are still being recovered from the rubble.

The Health Ministry places the current toll at 70,100. The ministry, which operates under the Hamas-run government, is staffed by medical professionals and keeps detailed records viewed as generally reliable by the international community.

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Staff at Nasser Hospital in southern Gaza said the bodies of two brothers, aged 8 and 11, were brought in after an Israeli drone struck near a school sheltering displaced people in the town of Beni Suhaila. Israel’s military said it had killed two people who crossed into an Israeli-controlled area, “conducted suspicious activities” and approached troops. The statement did not mention children. The military added that another person was killed in a separate but similar incident in the south.

According to Gaza’s Health Ministry, at least 352 Palestinians have been killed across the territory since the ceasefire took effect on October 10. The ministry does not distinguish between civilians and combatants. Israel says its strikes target militants violating the truce. Both Israel and Hamas have accused each other of breaching the agreement, and Hamas on Saturday urged mediators to press Israel to stop what it described as ceasefire violations in Gaza.

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A US blueprint for the future of Gaza, devastated by more than two years of war, remains in its early stages. The proposal outlines an international stabilisation force to provide security, a transitional authority overseen by US President Donald Trump and a possible future path towards an independent Palestinian state.

The conflict began with the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023, in which around 1,200 people were killed and more than 250 others were taken hostage. Almost all hostages or their remains have been returned in ceasefires or other agreements. The remains of two hostages, one Israeli and one Thai national, are still to be returned. Israelis again rallied in Tel Aviv on Saturday night to call for their return.

Israeli forces have advanced on several other fronts in recent weeks. Syrian officials said Israeli forces raided a Syrian village on Friday and opened fire when confronted by residents, killing at least 13 people. Israel said it carried out the operation to apprehend suspects from a militant group planning attacks in Israel, adding that militants opened fire at troops and wounded six.

Israel has also escalated strikes in Lebanon, saying it is targeting Hezbollah sites and asserting that the group is attempting to rearm. Hezbollah called on Pope Leo XIV to “reject injustice and aggression”, referring to near-daily Israeli strikes despite a ceasefire that ended the 14-month war between the two sides a year ago. The pope is visiting the region on his first foreign trip.

In the Israeli-occupied West Bank, Palestinians accused Israeli soldiers of executing two men on Thursday after footage aired by two Arab television stations appeared to show troops shooting the men after they surrendered. The Israeli military said it is investigating. Israeli settler violence has also continued to rise. On Saturday, the Palestinian Red Crescent reported that 10 Palestinians were injured by beatings and live ammunition during settler attacks in Khallet al Louza village near Bethlehem.