Palestinian death toll in Gaza exceeds 24,000: ministry

GAZA -- The Palestinian death toll from ongoing Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip has exceeded 24,000, the Gaza-based Health Ministry said on Monday.

The ministry said in a press statement that the Israeli army killed 132 Palestinians and wounded 252 others in the Strip during the past 24 hours.

This brings the total number of deaths to 24,100 and injuries to 60,834 in the Palestinian enclave since the Israel-Hamas conflict broke out on Oct 7, 2023, it noted.

At least 33 people have died as a result of the Israeli army's heavy bombing of several locations in Gaza City since early Monday morning, according to the official Palestinian news agency WAFA.

The Israeli bombing has rendered more than 70 percent of the northern Gaza Strip uninhabitable, the Palestinian Civil Defence said in a statement on Monday.

Meanwhile, at least five Palestinians were killed in clashes with Israeli forces in the West Bank on Sunday, which brings the number of Palestinians killed by Israel in the West Bank to at least 352 since a new round of violence erupted on Oct 7, 2023, according to Palestinian media outlets.