GAZA BOARDER: In a tragic development, over 10,000 Palestinians have lost their lives in Gaza since hostilities began on October 7 and the Rafah border crossing has now been reopened, CNN reported on Monday.
The Hamas-controlled Ministry of Health in Gaza said on Monday that the number of Palestinians killed in Gaza since the outbreak of hostilities with Israel on October 7 has now exceeded 10,000, CNN reported. At the same time, the Rafah border crossing, which had been closed over the weekend following an Israeli airstrike on a Palestinian Red Crescent ambulance, reopened on Monday to facilitate the passage of foreign nationals and wounded Palestinians from Gaza into Egypt.
According to Ashraf Al Qudra, the ministry’s spokesperson, this figure includes 4,104 children, 2,641 women, and 611 elderly individuals among the casualties, implying that roughly three-quarters of the victims belong to vulnerable populations. The ministry also noted an additional 25,408 people who have been injured in the conflict.
It is challenging to determine how many of the deceased were combatants, as independent verification of the data provided by the Gaza ministry is difficult, given the region’s isolation imposed by Israel and Egypt, according to CNN.
Israel initiated military action against Hamas after the terror group conducted a brutal attack on October 7, resulting in the deaths of 1,400 individuals in Israel and the kidnapping of more than 240 people. In retaliation, Israel launched an air and ground offensive in Gaza with the aim of eliminating the militant group.
The number of Palestinian casualties in Gaza over the past month exceeds the total casualties in conflicts with Israel over the past 15 years. The United Nations Human Rights Office expressed grave concern about the attacks on Gaza’s largest refugee camp, suggesting that the scale of casualties and destruction might potentially constitute war crimes, as reported by CNN.
In addition to this, the Rafah border crossing reopened on Monday to facilitate the passage of foreign nationals and wounded Palestinians from Gaza into Egypt. The crossing had been closed over the weekend following an Israeli airstrike on a Palestinian Red Crescent ambulance.
The Rafah border crossing is the only access point in and out of Gaza that is not controlled by Israel. Last week, an agreement was reached to allow foreign passport holders and critically injured civilians to depart through Rafah.
The Egyptian border official overseeing the reopening reported that nine severely injured Palestinians, who had sustained injuries from Israeli airstrikes in Gaza, were allowed to cross into Egypt for medical treatment on Monday. This group was accompanied by five individuals, bringing the total number of Palestinians transferred to Egypt for treatment to 93, based on a CNN tally.
Ambulances from the Egyptian Red Crescent were on standby near the border, ready to transport wounded Palestinians to hospitals.
Additionally, the General Authority for Crossings and Borders in Gaza announced that the Rafah crossing had opened for foreign nationals and Egyptian citizens listed as of November 1. Only those on the list are permitted to cross.
Furthermore, 25 aid trucks from the Egyptian Red Crescent crossed into Gaza on Sunday, bringing the total number of trucks that have entered Gaza to 476. Additional trucks were expected to cross on Monday, although communication difficulties in certain areas prevented confirmation of their passage.
On average, around 30 trucks per day have been granted passage, although the Palestinian Red Crescent Society emphasized once again that fuel supplies have yet to be allowed into the Gaza Strip, CNN reported. (ANI)