At least 17 Palestinians, including 15 in Gaza City, were killed in a fresh wave of Israeli attacks across the Gaza Strip since dawn, medical sources reported on Tuesday.

The strikes, which targeted densely populated neighborhoods, come amid an intensified ground offensive that has forced hundreds of thousands to flee, exacerbating what human rights experts describe as an ongoing genocide against the Palestinian population.

According to Gaza's Health Ministry, the latest casualties bring the total death toll in the enclave to over 66,000 since the war erupted on October 7, 2023, following a Hamas-led assault on Israel that killed around 1,200 people.

The ministry's figures, considered reliable by UN agencies and international observers, include more than 165,000 wounded and thousands more missing under rubble.

Independent analyses suggest the true toll could exceed 200,000 when accounting for indirect deaths from starvation, disease, and lack of medical care.

Local sources reported that Israeli forces detonated explosive-laden military vehicles in the Tal al-Hawa and Sabra neighborhoods of Gaza City, areas already scarred by weeks of relentless bombardment. Eyewitnesses described chaotic scenes of collapsing buildings and secondary explosions, with rescuers struggling to reach trapped civilians amid severed phone and internet lines.

"The blasts shook the entire block; we could hear screams buried under the debris," one resident told reporters.

This assault follows a pattern of escalated operations in Gaza City, where Israeli troops have pushed deeper into urban centers since mid-September, displacing up to a million people southward in what the UN has called a "man-made catastrophe."

 On September 20, strikes killed at least 91 Palestinians, including civilians attempting to evacuate on foot and in vehicles, with reports of attacks on ambulances and aid convoys.

 Health workers, who have lost over 1,700 colleagues since the war began, condemned the latest incident as a "bloody message" to abandon the city.

The broader conflict, now in its second year, has drawn accusations of genocide from multiple fronts. In January 2024, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled it "plausible" that Israel's actions in Gaza could violate the Genocide Convention, ordering provisional measures to prevent genocidal acts, ensure humanitarian aid access, and punish incitement.

However, Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International have documented Israel's non-compliance, citing blocked aid trucks—averaging just 57 per day in early 2024—and systematic obstruction of water and medical services.

As of September 2025, famine grips the Gaza Governorate, with 514,000 people—nearly a quarter of the population—facing catastrophic hunger levels, according to the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC).

Leaked Israeli military data reveals an alarming civilian death rate: five out of every six Palestinians killed since March 2025 have been non-combatants, one of the highest ratios in modern conflicts.

Over two-thirds of Gaza's buildings lie in ruins, and more than 68,000 total deaths—predominantly women and children—underscore the scale of destruction.

"This is not war; it's extermination," said a spokesperson for Medical Aid for Palestinians, highlighting strikes on hospitals like the Rantisi Children's Hospital earlier this month.

International condemnation has mounted, with UN experts urging states to enforce the ICJ orders and halt arms sales to Israel. Protests continue globally, echoing calls for a ceasefire and accountability, as mediated talks in Qatar stall over demands for a permanent end to hostilities.

With no immediate truce in sight, Gaza's 2.3 million residents remain trapped in a cycle of bombardment, displacement, and despair. The IRC reports aiding over 430,000 people but warns of an impending collapse in services without urgent intervention. (ILKHA)