Death toll in Gaza crosses 8,000, half of them children

The Gaza health ministry has said that more than 8,000 had been killed in the Palestinian territory since the start of the current conflict with Israel on October 7.

“The death toll linked to the Israeli aggression is past 8,000, half of whom are children,” the ministry told AFP.

Internet connectivity in the Gaza Strip is being restored, the global network monitor Netblocks said Sunday, almost two days after it was cut off during heavy Israeli bombardment.

“Real-time network data show that internet connectivity is being restored in the #Gaza Strip,” the company wrote on X, formerly Twitter.

An AFP employee in Gaza City said shortly after 4am (0200 GMT) that he could use the internet and had managed to contact people in southern Gaza by phone.

Internet and phone access had been cut off across Gaza since Friday, as Israel bombarded the territory.

Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said that fighting inside the Gaza Strip will be “long and difficult”, as Israeli ground forces continue operations in the Palestinian territory for more than 24 hours.

“The war in the [Gaza] Strip will be long and difficult and we are prepared for it,” Netanyahu told a news conference after meeting families of hostages held in Gaza since October 7.

Qatar-mediated negotiations between Israel and Hamas aimed at de-escalating fighting in Gaza continued on Saturday, a source briefed on the negotiations said, even as Israel intensified its assault on the enclave.

Talks have not broken down, but are taking place at a “much slower pace” than before the escalation from Friday evening, the source told Reuters, speaking on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of negotiations.

Gaza’s besieged people had barely any communications with the outside world on Saturday as Israeli jets dropped more bombs on the Hamas-ruled Palestinian enclave and military chiefs said a long-threatened ground offensive was gearing up.

Qatar has been conducting behind-the-scenes diplomacy for more than three weeks, speaking to Hamas officials and Israel to promote peace and secure the release of more than 200 hostages Hamas and other armed groups are holding in Gaza.