The essential

  • The Hamas health ministry reported early Friday that 20 people were killed and more than a hundred injured in "Israeli fire" on a crowd waiting for humanitarian aid in the northern Gaza Strip.

The essentials of the day before

  • Hamas said it had presented mediators with a truce proposal that includes the exchange of Israeli hostages for Palestinian prisoners.

    This sets as a prerequisite the cessation of the "aggression" suffered by the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, according to the Palestinian Islamist group, the arrival of humanitarian aid, the return of Gazan refugees to their homes and the withdrawal of Israeli troops.

  • Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas has appointed Mohammad Mustafa as the new head of government. 

  • Israel's Finance Minister responded to comments by US Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer, who called for elections in Israel, by saying the United States "must respect Israeli democracy."

  • The boat of the Spanish NGO Open Arms, loaded with 200 tonnes of food, left Cyprus for Gaza on Tuesday.

    This boat, which tows a barge, was underway early Thursday in the Mediterranean at a reduced speed and was located approximately 90 nautical miles (175 km) from the Gaza Strip, according to the specialized site Vessel Finder.

  • The loading of a second ship carrying food aid for Gaza is underway in Cyprus, according to the NGO World Central Kitchen (WCK).

  • The Hamas Ministry of Health announced a new toll of 31,341 people killed in the Gaza Strip since the start of the war between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist movement.

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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