By Abdul Adil
London, (The Muslim News): Humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza has reached unprecedented levels as the death toll from Israel’s ongoing military campaign surged past 63,557 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry. As the conflict enters its 11th month, the situation continues to deteriorate, with recent days marked by intensified airstrikes, widespread starvation, and continued displacement of civilians.
At least 63,557 Palestinians have been killed in Israel’s bombings on the Gaza Strip since October 2023, as nine more people, including three children, died of starvation in the enclave, the Health Ministry said on Monday.
A ministry statement said that 98 bodies were brought to hospitals in the last 24 hours, while 404 people were injured, taking the number of injuries to 160,660 in the Israeli onslaught.
Dozens killed in latest strikes
At least 45 Palestinians were killed across the Gaza Strip by Israeli bombings on Monday alone. Among the victims were children, women, and entire families, including a pregnant woman and her two children in the Shati refugee camp in Gaza City.
Other deadly strikes were reported in several neighborhoods of Gaza City, including Al-Nafaq Street, Sheikh Radwan, and Sabra, where drone attacks killed multiple civilians. In the Zeitoun neighborhood, the Israeli military has been detonating booby-trapped homes using old military vehicles and robots, further endangering the lives of residents.
In central Gaza, Israeli strikes on a home in the Bureij refugee camp killed a couple and their daughter. In Deir al-Balah, tents sheltering displaced civilians near Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital were hit, injuring several people and causing significant damage. Additional casualties were reported in Khan Younis and the Netzarim area, where both shelling and gunfire resulted in the deaths of more civilians, including people waiting for humanitarian aid.
Children dying from starvation
The Gaza Health Ministry reported that nine more people — including three children — have died from starvation, a grim consequence of Israel’s total blockade on Gaza since March 2. Humanitarian agencies have warned that the strip’s 2.4 million residents are facing famine conditions, with food, water, and medical aid increasingly scarce.
Humanitarian access severely restricted
Efforts to deliver aid have been crippled by Israeli restrictions and chaos at border crossings. The Government Media Office in Gaza reported that only 534 aid trucks have entered the enclave over the past five days — a fraction of the 3,000 estimated to be needed in that period. Over the past 35 days, just 3,188 trucks have made it into Gaza, less than 15% of the 21,000 required to meet minimum humanitarian needs.
Many of the trucks that do enter are reportedly looted amidst disorder, which the media office blamed on “deliberate chaos orchestrated by the Israeli occupation to manufacture famine and instability.”
Gaza declared a “dangerous combat zone”
On August 8, Israel’s Security Cabinet approved Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s plan for the gradual reoccupation of Gaza, beginning with Gaza City. Since then, the city — home to nearly a million Palestinians — has been declared a “dangerous combat zone,” triggering the forced displacement of thousands of residents from the northeast to the western districts under heavy fire.
Witnesses described mass evacuations, often with families forced to flee on foot amid airstrikes, without shelter or supplies.
Cultural losses mount
Among the many civilians killed was Louay Estita, 46, the Director of Gaza Sports Club — the enclave’s oldest sports institution. He was killed in an Israeli airstrike late Sunday while waiting for humanitarian aid near the Zakim crossing, according to local media and a statement from the club. Hundreds of residents had gathered there, hoping for food and medical supplies.
International outcry grows, but action remains elusive
As the death toll climbs and evidence of mass starvation emerges, calls for an immediate ceasefire and humanitarian intervention have intensified. However, political and logistical barriers continue to stall effective international response. Human rights organizations have described the situation as a “genocide in plain sight,” citing the mass killings, destruction of civilian infrastructure, and deliberate obstruction of humanitarian aid.
[Photo: Palestinians proceed to central Gaza through Al Rashid street with their limited belongings as intense Israeli attacks on northern Gaza force them to displacement, in Gaza Strip on September 01, 2025. Photojournalist: Abdalrahman T. A. Abusalama/AA]
