Nearly 800 children among over 2300 Gazans massacred by Israel as 2.3 million struggle for food, water, safety

Deir Al-Balah: Gaza’s 2.3 million civilians faced a deepening struggle for food, water and safety Sunday, October 15, and braced for a looming invasion a week after Hamas freedom fighters launched a deadly assault on Israel. While hundreds of thousands sought to heed Israel’s order to evacuate the north, others huddled at hospitals there.

Israeli forces, supported by a growing deployment of US warships in the region, positioned themselves along Gaza’s border and drilled for what Israel said would be a broad campaign to dismantle the militant group. A week of blistering airstrikes have demolished entire neighborhoods but failed to stem militant rocket fire into Israel.

‘Deadliest of 5 Gaza wars’

The Gaza Health Ministry said 2,329 Palestinians have been killed since the fighting erupted, more than in the 2014 Gaza war, which lasted over six weeks. Nearly 800 of them are said to be children. 

That makes this the deadliest of the five Gaza wars for both sides. More than 1,300 Israelis including occupying soldiers and settlers have reportedly been killed in Hamas’s Oct. 7 assault. This is the deadliest war for Israel since the 1973 conflict with Egypt and Syria.

Israel dropped leaflets over Gaza City in the north and renewed warnings on social media, ordering more than 1 million Palestinians — almost half the territory’s population — to move south.