Key Points
- 23 Palestinians, including 10 aid seekers killed in Israeli strikes
- WHO says over 14,800 Gaza patients in need of urgent care
- Gaza death toll nears 61,800
- Israeli minister announces settlement plan
- Mossad spy chief in Qatar to revive Gaza peace talks
GAZA: The Health Ministry in Gaza has reported four more hunger-related deaths in the past 24 hours, bringing the total number of Palestinians who have died from starvation during Israel’s war on Gaza to 239. Among the victims are 106 children.
Meanwhile, at least 23 Palestinians, including 10 aid seekers, have been killed since dawn in Israeli attacks on Gaza City and an aid point near southern Gaza’s Rafah.
Over 14,800 Gaza patients in urgent need of care – who
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has announced the successful evacuation of 38 critically ill patients from Gaza, while calling on more countries to provide life-saving treatment and help re-establish medical referral pathways.
According to WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the evacuation—carried out with support from the EU’s humanitarian arm, ECHO—included 32 children and six adults, accompanied by 99 family members.
Of those evacuated, 25 children and six adults were transferred to Italy, five children to Belgium, and two children to Türkiye for specialised care.
However, Tedros warned that more than 14,800 patients in Gaza still require urgent medical treatment that is unavailable in the enclave due to the ongoing conflict.
Gaza death toll nears 61,800
At least 61,776 Palestinians have been killed in Israel’s genocidal war on the Gaza Strip since October 2023, the Health Ministry said on Thursday.
A ministry statement said that 54 bodies, including four recovered from under rubble, were brought to hospitals in the last 24 hours, while 831 people were injured, taking the total number of injuries to 154,906 since the war began.
“Many victims are still trapped under the rubble and on the roads as ambulance and civil defense teams are unable to reach them,” it added.
The ministry noted that 23 Palestinians were killed and 269 others injured by Israeli strikes while trying to get humanitarian aid in the last 24 hours, bringing the total number of Palestinians killed while seeking aid to 1,881, with more than 13,863 others wounded since May 27.
Israeli minister announces settlement plan
Israeli far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich has announced that construction will soon begin on a long-delayed settlement project in the West Bank, known as the E1 plan. The project, which would effectively divide the West Bank and sever it from East Jerusalem, is seen by critics as a major blow to any future prospects of a Palestinian state.
Speaking at the site in Maale Adumim, Smotrich claimed the move had the backing of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former US President Donald Trump, although there has been no official confirmation from either party.
“Anyone in the world trying to recognise a Palestinian state today will get our answer on the ground—not through documents, decisions, or declarations, but through facts. Facts in the form of homes and neighborhoods,” Smotrich said.
Mossad spy chief in Qatar to revive Gaza peace talks
Mossad spy chief David Barnea is visiting Qatar to revive Gaza peace talks, two Israeli officials told Reuters on Thursday.
The visit follows a reported expression of eagerness by Hamas for a swift return to Gaza ceasefire negotiations during a meeting with Egypt’s intelligence chief in Cairo.
Meanwhile, Israeli far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich announced on Thursday plans to commence work on a long-delayed settlement that would divide the West Bank and isolate it from East Jerusalem, a move his office stated would “bury” the idea of a Palestinian state.
