Gaza death toll tops 73,300 as strikes persist despite ceasefire

Israeli airstrikes and gunfire have continued to kill Palestinians across the Gaza Strip this week, with Gaza's Health Ministry reporting on Friday that the overall death toll since October 2023 has risen to 73,317, including 1,191 killed since the US-brokered ceasefire took effect in October 2025.qna+1

Family of Six Killed as UN Condemns Intensifying Attacks

On Tuesday, July 21, an Israeli airstrike killed a father, his wife, and their four children in Gaza City's Sabra neighbourhood, setting their home ablaze, according to Reuters. The family was identified as Firas Al-Masri, his wife Salsabeel, and their four children.reuters

The UN Human Rights Office condemned the intensifying attacks the same day, with spokesman Thameen Al-Kheetan telling reporters in Geneva that "nine months after the announcement of a ceasefire, still, nowhere is safe for Palestinians in Gaza." The office reported that Israeli military attacks had killed at least 57 Palestinians, including six children and eight women, in the week from July 13 to 20 alone.lemonde+1

Earlier in the week, an Israeli strike on a funeral in central Gaza on July 17 killed at least seven people and wounded 22, according to the Associated Press. On July 15, three members of another family were killed in an airstrike on an apartment in the territory.aljazeera+1

Barrier Construction Deepens Territorial Division

Meanwhile, the Israeli military confirmed it has been building a massive earthen barrier along the so-called yellow line — the boundary to which Israeli troops withdrew under the ceasefire deal. The Washington Post reported on July 21 that more than 23 kilometers of the barrier have been constructed, separating the more than 50 percent of Gaza that Israel controls from the rest of the territory. The Jerusalem Post reported that Israel now controls between 50 and 70 percent of the strip.washingtonpost+2

Children Bear Heavy Toll

UNICEF in June called the ceasefire a "deadly illusion," reporting that 265 Palestinian children had been killed since the truce began — an average of one child per day. By mid-July, that figure had risen to at least 275 children, according to Gaza health officials.aljazeera+2

The ceasefire, agreed in October 2025 between Israel and Hamas, halted major ground fighting but has failed to stop near-daily Israeli air attacks across the enclave. Israel has said it targets Hamas militants, though the UN and humanitarian organizations have repeatedly questioned the civilian toll of such operations.reuters+3