Media reports says that the Hamas-run Health Ministry stated at a press conference yesterday that the Palestinian death toll in the Gaza Strip from ongoing Israeli attacks has risen to 31,341.
During the past 24 hours, the Israeli army reportedly killed 69 Palestinians and wounded 110 others in the coastal enclave, bringing the total death toll to 31,341 and injuries to 73,134 since the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas conflict on October 7, 2023, the ministry said.
The statement noted that some victims remained trapped under rubble due to heavy bombardment and a lack of civil defense and ambulance crews.
Israel has been launching a large-scale offensive against Hamas in the Gaza Strip to retaliate against a Hamas rampage through the southern Israeli border on Oct. 7, 2023, during which about 1,200 people were killed and more than 200 were taken hostage.
Financial Times reported on March 13 that according to Israeli intelligence assessments, more than 18 of the Islamist militant group’s 24 battalions have been dismantled as organized fighting forces, and about half of its 40,000 fighters have either been killed or wounded. Active Hamas fighters have reportedly melted away into small guerrilla cells, emerging to fire rocket-propelled grenades or place explosive devices.
Hamas, meanwhile, has reportedly said it has only lost 6,000 fighters, according to Financial Times.
A report released by the US Office of the Director of National Intelligence on February 5, 2024 says Israel probably will face lingering armed resistance from HAMAS for years to come, and the military will struggle to neutralize Hamas’s underground infrastructure, which allows insurgents to hide, regain strength, and surprise Israeli forces.
Financial Times notes that according to the senior Israeli military official, the bulk of the remaining Hamas battalions, have retreated to the southern city of Rafah and the refugee camps of Deir al Balah and Nusseirat in central Gaza.
Israel has repeatedly said that it plans to expand its offensive to Rafah, despite international warnings that it would have a disastrous impact on the 1.5 million people who have sought sanctuary in the city.
