The main thing to remember

  • Early Saturday, witnesses reported strikes in the vicinity of Rafah, the last refuge of populations displaced by the ongoing conflict since October 7, by increasing airstrikes.

  • After Gaza City, then Khan Younes, Israel is now aiming for a ground operation in this city bordering Egypt, in the far south of the Gaza Strip.

  • Israeli strikes targeted the area around the Syrian capital Damascus, said an NGO and the official Syrian press agency, which reported "material" damage.

  • The Hamas Ministry of Health announced on Friday a new death toll of 27,947 in the Gaza Strip.

The essentials of the day before

  • The United States announced it had carried out strikes targeting four surface drones and seven cruise missiles "ready to be launched against ships in the Red Sea" by Yemen's Houthi rebels.

  • Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu asked his army to submit a “combined plan” for the “evacuation” of civilians from Rafah, the last refuge for Palestinians displaced from the Gaza Strip.

  • Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas "vehemently" condemned the proposed offensive;

  • In Gaza, nearly one in ten children under the age of five suffers from acute malnutrition, according to data revealed by the UN. 

Please note: the number of victims is provided by the Hamas-led Gaza Ministry of Health.

The ministry collects information provided by hospitals in the enclave and by the Palestinian Red Crescent.

The Health Ministry in Gaza does not indicate how the Palestinians were killed, whether by Israeli airstrikes and/or barrages or failed Palestinian rocket attacks. It describes all victims as victims of "Israeli aggression" and also does not distinguish between civilians and combatants.

During the four wars and numerous skirmishes between Israel and Hamas, United Nations agencies regularly cited Health Ministry figures in their reports. The International Committee of the Red Cross and the Palestinian Red Crescent also use these figures.

In the aftermath of previous episodes of war, the United Nations Humanitarian Office published casualty figures based on its own research into medical records. The UN figures largely agree with those of the Gaza Ministry of Health, with a few differences.

To learn more about the reports from the Gaza Ministry of Health, click here or here.

France 24 with AP

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