40,405 Palestinians Killed in Israel's Military Offensive on Gaza since Oct. 7

Palestinians inspect damage in Hamad City, following an Israeli raid, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, in Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip, August 24, 2024. REUTERS/Hatem Khaled/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights
Palestinians inspect damage in Hamad City, following an Israeli raid, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, in Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip, August 24, 2024. REUTERS/Hatem Khaled/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights
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40,405 Palestinians Killed in Israel's Military Offensive on Gaza since Oct. 7

Palestinians inspect damage in Hamad City, following an Israeli raid, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, in Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip, August 24, 2024. REUTERS/Hatem Khaled/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights
Palestinians inspect damage in Hamad City, following an Israeli raid, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, in Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip, August 24, 2024. REUTERS/Hatem Khaled/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights

At least 40,405 Palestinians have been killed and 93,468 others injured in Israel's military offensive on Gaza since Oct. 7, said the Gaza Health Ministry, Reuters reported.

In the last 24-hours, 71 were killed and 112 were injured in what the ministry called three massacres by Israel in the strip.

The recent war in Gaza started after Hamas attacked Israel on Oct. 7.

Israel says it goes out of its way to avoid civilian casualties and accuses Hamas of using human shields, an allegation the group denies.



UN Rights Chief ‘Gravely Concerned’ by Lebanon Escalation

Smoke billows above Beirut’s southern suburbs following an Israeli airstrike on November 26, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hezbollah. (AFP)
Smoke billows above Beirut’s southern suburbs following an Israeli airstrike on November 26, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hezbollah. (AFP)
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UN Rights Chief ‘Gravely Concerned’ by Lebanon Escalation

Smoke billows above Beirut’s southern suburbs following an Israeli airstrike on November 26, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hezbollah. (AFP)
Smoke billows above Beirut’s southern suburbs following an Israeli airstrike on November 26, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hezbollah. (AFP)

The UN rights chief on Tuesday voiced concern about the escalation of hostilities in Lebanon, where his office said nearly 100 people had been reported killed by Israeli airstrikes in recent days, including women, children and medics.

Israel has been locked in fighting with Lebanese armed group Hezbollah since Oct. 2023, and fighting has escalated dramatically since late September of this year.

"UN Human Rights Chief Volker Turk is gravely concerned by the escalation in Lebanon with at least 97 people reportedly killed in Israeli airstrikes between the 22nd and 24th of November," Jeremy Laurence, a spokesperson for the Office of the High Commissioner of Human Rights, told a Geneva press briefing.

He said that at least seven paramedics had been reported killed in three Israeli strikes in the south of Lebanon on Nov. 22-23, adding to 226 healthcare worker deaths since Oct. 7, 2023. He did not specify how many of the recent deaths had been verified by UN human rights monitors.

Israel says it targets military capabilities in Lebanon and Gaza and takes steps to mitigate the risk of harm to civilians. It accuses Hezbollah, like Hamas, of hiding among civilians, which they deny.