Palestinian death toll in Gaza rises to 31,490: Ministry

A boy squats in front of a destroyed building in the southern Gaza Strip city of Rafah, on March 15, 2024. [Xinhua]

The Palestinian death toll in the Gaza Strip from ongoing Israeli attacks has risen to 31,490, the Hamas-run Health Ministry said in a press statement on Friday.

During the past 24 hours, the Israeli army killed 149 Palestinians and wounded 300 others in the coastal enclave, bringing the total death toll to 31,490 and injuries to 73,439 since the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas conflict on Oct. 7, 2023, it said.

The statement noted that some victims remained trapped under rubble due to heavy bombardment and a lack of civil defense and ambulance crews.

Israel has been launching a large-scale offensive against Hamas in the Gaza Strip to retaliate against a Hamas rampage through the southern Israeli border on Oct. 7, 2023, during which about 1,200 people were killed and more than 200 were taken hostage.