Palestinian death toll in Gaza surpasses 18,400

People mourn victims after an Israeli airstrike in the southern Gaza Strip city of Rafah, on Dec. 12, 2023. The Ministry of Health in the Gaza Strip announced on Tuesday that the Palestinian death toll in the Palestinian enclave has exceeded 18,400 since the eruption of the Hamas-Israel conflict on Oct. 7. (Photo by Khaled Omar/Xinhua)

GAZA, Dec. 12 (Xinhua) -- The Ministry of Health in the Gaza Strip announced on Tuesday that the Palestinian death toll in the Palestinian enclave has exceeded 18,400 since the eruption of the Hamas-Israel conflict on Oct. 7.

The ministry's spokesman Ashraf al-Qedra said during a press conference that as of Tuesday, a total of 18,412 Palestinians have been killed and 50,100 others wounded in the Israeli military raids on Gaza.

During the past hours, the bodies of 207 Palestinians were transferred to hospitals in the Gaza Strip, while 450 others were wounded in the Israeli raids, al-Qedra said.

Israel has been launching relentless strikes and a ground offensive in Gaza since Oct. 7 in retaliation for Hamas' surprise attack on southern Israel, which killed about 1,200 people. A 10-day ceasefire was implemented in late November to free 105 Israeli hostages by Hamas in exchange for the release of 240 Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails.

A girl collects items among the rubble of a building after an Israeli airstrike in the southern Gaza Strip city of Rafah, on Dec. 12, 2023. The Ministry of Health in the Gaza Strip announced on Tuesday that the Palestinian death toll in the Palestinian enclave has exceeded 18,400 since the eruption of the Hamas-Israel conflict on Oct. 7. (Photo by Khaled Omar/Xinhua)

A man holds the body of a victim after an Israeli airstrike in the southern Gaza Strip city of Rafah, on Dec. 12, 2023. The Ministry of Health in the Gaza Strip announced on Tuesday that the Palestinian death toll in the Palestinian enclave has exceeded 18,400 since the eruption of the Hamas-Israel conflict on Oct. 7. (Photo by Khaled Omar/Xinhua)

A boy is seen among the rubble of a building destroyed in an Israeli airstrike in the southern Gaza Strip city of Rafah, on Dec. 12, 2023. The Ministry of Health in the Gaza Strip announced on Tuesday that the Palestinian death toll in the Palestinian enclave has exceeded 18,400 since the eruption of the Hamas-Israel conflict on Oct. 7. (Photo by Khaled Omar/Xinhua)

A young man collects items among the rubble of a building after an Israeli airstrike in the southern Gaza Strip city of Rafah, on Dec. 12, 2023. The Ministry of Health in the Gaza Strip announced on Tuesday that the Palestinian death toll in the Palestinian enclave has exceeded 18,400 since the eruption of the Hamas-Israel conflict on Oct. 7. (Photo by Khaled Omar/Xinhua)