Gaza: Palestinian death toll rises past 55,000 amid conflict

The Palestinian death toll in the Gaza war, which began on October 7th 2023, has reached 55,493, Middle East Eye reported on June 18th.

The Palestinian Ministry of Health confirmed at least 129,320 suffered wounds. Since March 18th 2025, the ministry recorded 5,194 more deaths and 17,279 injuries.

On June 19th, Reuters reported that Israeli strikes and gunfire killed at least 140 people across Gaza within 24 hours, according to local health officials. Gaza’s health ministry stated that many of the victims died while seeking food aid.

Strikes on homes in Gaza City, the Maghazi refugee camp, and the Zeitoun neighbourhood killed at least 21 people. An airstrike on Khan Younis killed five more.

Officials noted that nearly 400 people seeking aid have died since late May. Some residents expressed concern that global attention has shifted toward Israel’s conflict with Iran.

Amidst the Gaza crisis, Israeli airstrikes on May 26th killed more than 54 Palestinians before dawn, Al Jazeera reported and Maghrebi cited. One strike hit the Fahmi al-Jarjawi School in Gaza City, where hundreds of displaced people were sheltering.

The attack killed 36 people, including children and women. Another airstrike on a home in Jabalia killed 16 members of the same family. Local hospitals confirmed the toll. The civilian death toll in Gaza keeps climbing as Israeli forces continue bombing schools which are used as shelters, leaving families, including many children, among the victims of the ongoing attacks.

Additionally, according to Asharq Al-Awsat on June 4th, the United Nations’ humanitarian chief stated that recent deadly incidents in Gaza reflect deliberate actions that have systematically denied civilians essential aid. The chief, Tom Fletcher, highlighted that people have been killed or injured while trying to access food.

The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation temporarily closed its aid sites after fatal shootings near its centres. Fletcher called for the opening of crossings.

Al Jazeera, Asharq Al-Awsat, Middle East Eye, Reuters, Maghrebi.org