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Palestinians collect their belongings from their evacuated homes after the Israeli army issued a number of short term access permits for residents of the occupied West Bank refugee camp of Tulkarem, Wednesday, June 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Majdi Mohammed)

More than 1,000 people have been killed in Gaza during ceasefire, Health Ministry says

Jun 17, 2026 | 8:52 AM

DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Israeli operations in the Gaza Strip have killed 1,005 Palestinians since a ceasefire was reached between Israel and the militant group Hamas last October, the Gaza Health Ministry said Wednesday.

The enclave has seen near-daily strikes, as well as shelling and gunfire along the boundary that divides Gaza into Israeli and Palestinian-controlled zones. The most recent deaths were recorded after a series of Israeli drone strikes in the past few days on towns and refugee camps in central Gaza and Gaza City.

Also Wednesday, an Israeli strike killed two Palestinians and wounded six others in Khan Younis in southern Gaza, health officials at Nasser Hospital said. The Israeli military acknowledged carrying out the strike and said the target was a “terrorist” but did not elaborate. Families at the hospital said the strike targeted a group of people near the beach in the sprawling tent camp of Mawasi, where hundreds of thousands of displaced Palestinians live.

Israel has said it is continuing to operate against Hamas and allied militants in Gaza and has expanded the amount of territory it controls inside the strip.

In a separate statement Wednesday, the Israeli military said that it killed two militants from Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad in strikes over the weekend.

Gaza’s Health Ministry on Sunday said the death toll from the Israel-Hamas war that started in October 2023 had surpassed 73,000 in Gaza. The ministry does not differentiate between civilians and combatants. It is staffed by medical professionals and maintains detailed records viewed as generally reliable by the international community.

The Associated Press