The Palestinian Ministry of Health reported on Tuesday that the death toll from the Israeli war of extermination since October 7, 2023, has risen to "67,913 martyrs and 170,134 wounded."
In its daily statistical report, the ministry said that Gaza Strip hospitals received "44 martyrs and 29 injured" over the past 24 hours. It added that "the martyrs include 38 people whose bodies were recovered," indicating that they had been killed in previous days or weeks.
The ministry did not clarify the circumstances of the deaths of the remaining six Palestinians or the injuries, despite the ceasefire between Hamas and Israel having been in effect since Friday.
But Hamas reported earlier today that the Israeli occupation army had killed and wounded an unspecified number of Palestinians through shelling and gunfire, which it considered a "violation of the ceasefire agreement."
In contrast, the Israeli occupation army today admitted to shooting at Palestinians who it said had "crossed the yellow line and approached its forces," justifying its action by saying it had "removed the threat."
The "yellow line" is the first withdrawal line stipulated in US President Donald Trump's plan for a ceasefire between Hamas and Israel.
The Palestinian Ministry of Health stated in a statement that there were a number of victims under the rubble and in the streets, stressing that ambulance and civil defense crews were unable to reach them at the moment.
Israeli warning
In a related development, the Israeli occupation army warned Palestinians on Tuesday to stay away from areas within the Gaza Strip, claiming to "preserve their safety."
Israeli army spokesman Avichay Adraee threatened in a tweet on the X platform: "You must not approach the forces in their areas of deployment. Approaching them puts you in danger."
Adraee attached a map showing the yellow line where Israeli forces are located, as part of the first phase of the ceasefire agreement.
Handing over the remains of prisoners
Meanwhile, an Israeli official told a Hebrew-language channel on Tuesday that Hamas might return the remains of Israeli prisoners tonight (Tuesday/Wednesday night).
Channel 12 quoted an unnamed official as saying: "There is a good chance that Hamas will return the remains of the kidnapped soldiers today (Tuesday) or tonight (Tuesday/Wednesday night)," adding: "We see that they (Hamas) are making greater efforts in the last hours."
On Monday, Hamas released the 20 living Israeli prisoners and handed over the remains of 4 of the 28, saying it needed time to retrieve the remains of the remaining prisoners in light of the massive destruction caused by the war of extermination.
In return, Israel released 250 Palestinian prisoners serving life sentences, in addition to 1,718 others it had arrested from the Gaza Strip after October 8, 2023.
On Tuesday, Channel 13 reported that Israel had decided not to reopen the Rafah border crossing between the Gaza Strip and Egypt tomorrow, Wednesday, and to reduce the entry of humanitarian aid, as Hamas has not yet handed over the remains of the remaining prisoners.
More than 10,000 Palestinian prisoners, including women and children, remain languishing in Israeli prisons, suffering torture, starvation, and medical neglect. Many of these prisoners have been killed, according to Palestinian and Israeli human rights and media reports.
Since Friday afternoon, the first phase of a ceasefire agreement has been in effect, after two years of Israeli genocide against Palestinians in Gaza.
The agreement is based on a plan proposed by Trump and was reached by the two parties following indirect negotiations in the Egyptian resort of Sharm el-Sheikh, with the participation of Ankara, Cairo, and Doha, under US supervision.
