Civilian casualties fuel concerns
Israel-Palestine conflict in Gaza takes toll on residents with health authorities reporting hospital beds filled, medicines set to run out
Since the latest conflict between Israelis and Palestinians broke out, civilian casualties caused by the violence have been a focus of the international community.
The Palestinian Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) launched a surprise attack on Israel on Oct 7, which included the firing of thousands of rockets and ground attacks on Israeli towns bordering Gaza.
In response, Israel launched airstrikes on the Gaza Strip. The ongoing conflict has taken a heavy toll on both sides, with fatalities in Israel and Gaza rising to at least 1,200 and 1,100, respectively.
Israel has also ordered "a full siege" of Gaza, cutting the supply of electricity, food and water to the coastal enclave.
Fighting continued on Wednesday, with Israeli airstrikes hitting neighborhoods in the blockaded enclave, while militants in Gaza continued to fire rockets toward southern and northern Israel. The Israeli army also reported several infiltrations of gunmen with at least five militants killed.
The Palestine Red Crescent Society said on Wednesday that four of its paramedics were killed during Israeli airstrikes on Gaza. The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees reported the loss of 11 employees in the Gaza Strip since the weekend.
The Health Ministry in Gaza said in a statement on Wednesday that all hospital beds in the Palestinian enclave had been occupied, and medicines were about to run out as the conflict continued.
Given the hostilities affecting civilians, Kamaruzaman bin Yusoff, a Middle East analyst and former dean of Universiti Teknologi Malaysia's Faculty of Islamic Civilization, said that "we should not consider the current escalation of war and hostilities between the Palestinian people and the Israeli government as the first and the last".
He said these are considered "as part of the long processes of attacks, conflicts, hostilities between the two parties".
China Daily - Xinhua
