Gaza Strip death toll surpasses 11,100 Over 28,000 wounded

The Palestinian Ministry of Health in Hamas-controlled Gaza has stated that the ongoing Israeli strikes on the Strip killed more than 11,180 people since the start of the war on October 7.

Of the total death toll, 4,609 were minors and 3,100 were women, Al Hadath reports, citing the ministry.

According to the ministry, the total number of people injured in the battles has reached 28,200.

Meanwhile, the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) reported that two more soldiers have been killed fighting in the northern Gaza Strip, bringing the death toll in the ground operation against Hamas to 44.

The military names the slain troops as Maj. Isachar Natan, 28, from Kiryat Malachi, and Staff Sgt. Itay Shoham, 21, from Rosh Ha’ayin. Both were members of the Commando Brigade.

A soldier of the Oketz canine unit was seriously wounded during fighting in Gaza yesterday, the IDF adds.

The IDF spokesman Daniel Hagari said the Israeli army has operational plans to change the security situation in the north of the country.

"The IDF has operational plans to change the security situation in the north. The security situation will not remain the same when the residents of the north do not feel safe returning to their homes," Mr Hagari told reporters (his words are quoted on the IDF website). The army spokesman did not give details of the plan.

Israel holds Lebanese authorities and Hezbollah responsible for the strikes on Israeli territory. Hagari promised that the people of Lebanon "will pay the price for this lawlessness and for Hezbollah's decision to become the protector of IS" ("Islamic State", Israel equates the Palestinian movement Hamas with IS).

Israel and Hezbollah have been exchanging strikes more intensively amid the ongoing war in the Gaza Strip. Thus, the day before, on 12 November, the Lebanese movement attacked the border positions of the Israeli army, Israel retaliated. Israel warns Lebanon against entering the war.

On November 12, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told US media that a deal could be afoot to free hostages held by Hamas in Gaza, but declined to provide details for fear of scuttling the potential plan.

"We heard that there was an impending deal of this kind or of that kind and then we learned that it was all hokum. But the minute we started the ground operation, that began to change," Netanyahu told NBC show "Meet the Press."

Asked whether there is a potential deal to free more of the hostages being held by Hamas militants, Netanyahu replied: "There could be."

But the leader stopped short of providing specifics about any plan that might be coming together to free some or all of the 239 hostages that Israel says are being held captive.

"I think the less I say about it, the more I'll increase the chances that it materializes," he said.

Netanyahu has flatly rejected calls for a ceasefire in Gaza without the release of the hostages.

Asked on CNN whether he agrees with the US position that an extended pause in Gaza fighting is needed in order to get the hostages released safely, Netanyahu said: "We don't disagree with that. We need to get our hostages out."

In addition, Netanyahu said in an interview with CNN that Israel seeks to minimise civilian casualties in the Gaza Strip.

"We are trying to minimise civilian casualties," he said.

According to him, the number of civilian deaths has decreased since the start of Israel's ground operation.

At the same time, in an interview with CBS News, US President's National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan has said the United States opposes the fighting affecting medical facilities in the Gaza Strip.

According to him, Washington has conveyed this position to the Israel Defence Forces (IDF).

"The US does not want to see shootings in hospitals where innocent people, patients who are receiving medical care, are caught in the crossfire. We have consulted extensively with the Israeli army on this issue," Sullivan said.

On November 12, Hamas said it was suspending hostage negotiations because of Israel's handling of the Al Shifa Hospital in Gaza, a Palestinian official briefed on the hostage talks told Reuters.

The hospital has come under intense fire as Israeli forces close in on the facility. Israel accuses Hamas of using the hospital as a cover for a command centre without providing proof. Hamas has denied the accusations.

Moreover, Political sources confirmed that Egypt has "politely refused" to accept any humanitarian aid to Gaza from Iran, due to the Israeli occupation’s refusal.

During a meeting at the Arab-Islamic summit in Riyadh with President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi repeated Iran’s request to send aid.

During the summit on November 11, Raisi urged Muslim-majority nations to provide weaponry to Palestinians engaged in combat against the Israeli occupation forces.

"Muslim countries should arm the Palestinian people. Resistance is the only answer to Israeli violence. Countries around the world, including Muslim ones, should ensure the protection of the Palestinian people in the occupied territories," he said at a Joint Arab Islamic Extraordinary Summit in Riyadh.

Marking the first visit of a sitting Iranian president to Riyadh in over a decade, Raisi advocated for an end to trade and collaboration between Muslim nations and "Israel" and called for a boycott of Israeli-linked products.