28,340 Palestinians killed in Israeli strikes on Gaza since Oct.7: Health ministry

The health ministry in the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip on Monday said at least 28,340 people have been killed in the besieged territory during the war between Palestinian militants and Israel.

The latest toll includes 164 fatalities over the past 24 hours, a ministry statement said, while a total of 67,984 people have been wounded in Gaza since the start of the war on October 7.

The death toll comes as Israeli forces are expected to move ahead with an assault on the overcrowded southern Gaza city of Rafah.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu last week said he had ordered troops to prepare to go into the city, crowded with displaced Palestinians, as it hunts down those responsible for the deadly October 7 attacks on southern Israel.