UPDATE - Gaza death toll from Israeli war nears 64,700 as 5 more Palestinians die of starvation

UPDATES DEATH TOLL, CHANGES HEADLINE, DECK

By Betul Yilmaz and Tarek Chouiref

ISTANBUL (AA) – At least 64,656 Palestinians have been killed in Israel’s genocidal war on the Gaza Strip since October 2023, as five more people died of starvation in the besieged enclave, the Health Ministry said on Wednesday.

A ministry statement said that 41 bodies were brought to hospitals in the last 24 hours, while 184 people were injured, taking the number of injuries to 163,503 in the Israeli onslaught.

“Many victims are still trapped under the rubble and on the roads as rescuers are unable to reach them,” it added.

The ministry also noted that 12 Palestinians were killed and over 30 others injured by Israeli army fire while trying to get humanitarian aid in the last 24 hours, bringing the total number of Palestinians killed while seeking aid to 2,456, with over 17,861 others wounded since May 27.

The ministry said that five more Palestinians, including a child, died of malnutrition and starvation in the last 24 hours. This brought the famine-linked death toll since October 2023 to 404 people, including 141 children.

According to the ministry, 126 of the deaths, 26 of them children, occurred after the UN-backed hunger monitoring system Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) formally declared Gaza a famine zone last month.

Since March 2, Israeli authorities have completely closed all Gaza border crossings, pushing the territory’s 2.4 million population into famine.

The Israeli army resumed its attacks on the Gaza Strip on March 18 and has since killed 12,098 people and injured 51,462 others, shattering a ceasefire and prisoner exchange agreement that took hold in January.

Last November, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.