The militants also took 250 hostages, dozens of whom were released during a week-long truce in November. Israel believes 99 hostages remain alive and that 31 have died.
Israel’s withering bombardment and ground offensive have killed 31,045 people, mostly women and children, the health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza said on Sunday.
It has also said at least 23 children have died from malnutrition and dehydration.
Inside Gaza, displaced Palestinians were lining up at a truck carrying scarce drinking water, which they filled into jerry cans and plastic containers.
“Now, on regular days, we can barely get water, so what about the upcoming Ramadan?” said one woman, Nesreen Abu Yussef.
“In the camp we have sick children who need sugar and protein, our children are getting dizzy,” she said. “I swear, for the last five months we haven’t seen a single egg or meat.”
“CLOSE-QUARTER COMBAT”
Fighting and bombardment again rocked Gaza, where 81 bodies arrived overnight at barely functioning hospitals, according to the health ministry.
The Israeli military said its troops had killed 13 militants in air strikes and with tank and sniper fire in central Gaza over the past day.
Troops were also engaged in “close-quarter combat” in the southern city of Khan Yunis, where strikes had killed 17 militants.
The army has reported that 248 of its forces have died in Gaza, where it claims to have killed more than 10,000 militants.
Israeli military spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said Israel was preparing for “all possible operational scenarios” during Ramadan.
“Shortly before Ramadan, Hamas is preventing a deal and is acting against what was raised by the mediators,” he said.
The army earlier dropped leaflets with pictures of Hamas leaders enjoying a lavish meal and Palestinians with near-empty plates.
One Gaza man, Attallah al-Satel, told AFP: “What is the purpose of this leaflet? We want a solution, to stop the war. We are just exhausted citizens.”
Qatar-based Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh called for the speedy distribution of aid and the full opening of border crossings “to end the siege of our people”.
Biden last Thursday announced that the US military would build a temporary pier on Gaza’s coast to facilitate larger aid shipments by sea, but the Pentagon warned this would take about 60 days.
The US Central Command said a ship had left Joint Base Langley-Eustis in Virginia on Saturday carrying the “first equipment to establish a temporary pier” to receive aid off Gaza.
International Committee of the Red Cross chief Mirjana Spoljaric again called for a ceasefire and for both sides to respect international law and protect civilians.
“It is the line between humanity and barbarity,” she said, adding that the situation was degenerating “by the hour” in a war that had “ruptured any sense of a shared humanity”.
Source: CNA
