Palestinian death toll in Gaza surpasses 12,000

GAZA, Nov. 17 (Xinhua) -- Gaza's government media office announced on Friday that the total number of Palestinian deaths in the enclave has exceeded 12,000 since the start of the Israel-Hamas conflict on Oct. 7.

Ismail al-Thawabta, the director general of the media office, said at a press conference that among the dead were 5,000 children and 3,300 women, adding that more than 30,000 people were variously injured.

Al-Thawabta said the number of missing persons had surpassed 3,750, including 1,800 children still under the rubble of buildings destroyed in Israeli attacks.

He accused the Israeli army of deliberately targeting hospitals in the Gaza Strip to deprive Palestinians of health services and push them to be displaced.

The Palestinian official called on the international community to intervene to "liberate the Al-Shifa Medical Complex and supply it with fuel urgently," in light of the danger facing hundreds of sick and wounded people and thousands of displaced people taking shelter inside.

The medical complex, the largest health institution in Gaza, recently encountered combing operations and blockade by Israeli forces, who insisted that the hospital is used by Hamas for military purposes, a claim repeatedly denied by Hamas and the hospital administration.

Israel has been carrying out an all-out attack on Gaza to retaliate against the Hamas attacks on southern Israel on Oct. 7, during which Hamas militants killed about 1,200 people and took more than 200 hostages.