Palestinian officials say at least 10,000 Palestinians have been killed
Israeli ground forces have intensified amid reports that the Palestinian death toll has risen to 10,000, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry, per ABC News.
In Israel, 1,400 people have died — mostly civilians that were killed during Hamas’ attack that started the war on Oct. 7.
“The figures mark a grim milestone in what has quickly become the deadliest round of Israeli-Palestinian violence since Israel’s establishment 75 years ago, with no end in sight,” The Associated Press reported.
Israeli troops in Gaza City
Israeli troops will likely enter Gaza City soon, and numbers of deaths are likely to rise. The sheer number of deaths on both sides is “unprecedented in the decades-old conflict,” per PBS.
“We’re closing in on them,” Lt. Col. Richard Hecht, an Israeli military spokesperson, told AP. “We’ve completed our encirclement, separating Hamas strongholds in the north from the south.”
Forces have cut off “northern Gaza from the rest of the besieged territory and pounded it with intense airstrikes overnight into Monday,” PBS reported.
Around 70% of Gaza’s population have evacuated, and supplies in the area for remaining residents are running low. A one-way corridor that residents can use to flee south is still open for those who haven’t fled yet but hope to before attacks escalate, per PBS.
