Media office says more than 73,000 killed or missing, thousands of health workers and journalists among dead
Gaza’s Government Media Office said Saturday that 700 days of Israeli bombardment on the enclave have left nearly all of the territory’s infrastructure in ruins and inflicted losses of more than $68 billion.
In a statement, the office said the deadly campaign has resulted in the destruction of about 90% of Gaza’s infrastructure, alongside “systematic policies of genocide and forced displacement.”
It said that more than 73,700 people have been killed or remain missing, including over 20,000 children and 12,500 women. According to the office, 2,700 families have been completely wiped from the civil registry.
Among the dead are 1,670 medical personnel, 248 journalists, 139 civil defense members, and 173 municipal employees. More than 162,000 others have been wounded, many suffering life-changing injuries such as amputations, paralysis and loss of sight.
The office also cited the destruction of 38 hospitals, 833 mosques, and 163 educational institutions, alongside widespread damage to thousands of other public facilities.
It accused Israel of enforcing mass displacement by preventing residents from returning to homes in Gaza City and the north, as well as using starvation as a weapon of war.
The media office said hundreds of thousands of aid trucks have been blocked from entering Gaza, pushing 2.4 million residents, including more than 1 million children, to the brink of famine.
Holding Israel and its supporters, chiefly the US, responsible for the devastation, the office called on Arab and Islamic countries, the broader international community and the United Nations to “act immediately to end the aggression, lift the blockade, secure the return of displaced families, and hold Israeli leaders accountable before international courts.”
Israel’s genocidal war in Gaza entered day 700 on Friday, with Israel having killed over 64,300 Palestinians. The military campaign has devastated the enclave, which is facing famine.
Last November, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.
