Death Toll in Gaza Rises as UN Warns of Alarming Child Fatalities
GAZA CITY, August 5 — At least 74 Palestinians were killed on Monday in a fresh wave of Israeli airstrikes across the Gaza Strip, according to local health officials, reported by Al Jazeera. The dead include 36 civilians who were seeking humanitarian aid, deepening fears of a growing humanitarian catastrophe.
The United Nations has sounded the alarm over the scale of child fatalities, estimating that 28 children are dying each day — victims of both relentless Israeli bombardment and a critical shortage of life-saving aid.
In one tragic incident, a nurse at Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir el-Balah was killed after being struck by an airdropped box of aid, a medical source told Al Jazeera — underscoring the dangers even within emergency efforts.
As fighting grinds on, Hamas announced its willingness to allow the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) access to Israeli captives in Gaza — on the condition that Israel opens humanitarian corridors to provide aid to all Gazans.
Since Israel eased some restrictions on July 27, an average of 84 aid trucks have entered Gaza daily. However, aid groups warn that a minimum of 600 trucks per day are required to meet basic needs, leaving the population in a dire state of deprivation.
To date, Israel’s offensive in Gaza has killed at least 60,933 people and wounded 150,027, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry. These figures stand in stark contrast to the 1,139 people killed in Israel during the October 7, 2023 attacks, in which over 200 people were also taken hostage.
With no ceasefire in sight, humanitarian agencies warn that Gaza’s death toll will continue to rise — particularly among the most vulnerable.
