According to CNN, which cited Hamas authorities in the Strip, the number of people killed in Gaza by the Israeli offensive since October 7 has reached 14,854, with 5,850 of them being children. The Palestinian Health Ministry in Ramallah announced 12,700 casualties on Monday, citing information from sources in the Gaza Strip. CNN noted that obtaining up-to-date numbers has become difficult due to Israel’s ongoing air and ground campaign. The report stated that recent health updates show communication breakdowns in Gaza that make it difficult to collect reliable data.
Martin Griffiths, the director of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, defended the death toll figures they cited and said they were based on information from Gaza.
“We don’t put these figures out without thought,” CNN reported Griffiths as saying.
Meanwhile, before the multi-day truce takes hold starting Friday, Israeli ground forces intensified shelling in northern Gaza.
The pause, set to begin at 7 am (local time), includes the release of the first group of 13 hostages held by Hamas since October 7.
As part of the four-day cease-fire between Israel and Hamas, civilian hostages are to be released on Friday afternoon in exchange for Palestinian prisoners, Qatar announced on Thursday, according to CNN.
A spokesman for Qatar’s foreign ministry, Majed Al-Ansari, stated that the truce will start at 7 am (local time) and that the 13 women and children who have been held captive will be freed at 4 pm.