GAZA CITY, Palestine 

Around 17,000 Palestinian children have been killed in Israel’s ongoing war on the Gaza Strip since last October, according to local authorities on Sunday.

"Around 25,973 Palestinian children now live in Gaza without one or both parents due to the Israeli aggression,” Ismail al-Thawabta, who heads Gaza’s government media office, told Anadolu.

He said at least 16,859 children, including 171 infants, have been killed in Israeli attacks since Oct. 7, 2023.

The UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) has repeatedly warned that "Gaza’s children have endured unimaginable horrors” under relentless Israeli attacks.

Israel has continued its brutal offensive on the Gaza Strip following an attack by the Palestinian group Hamas last Oct. 7, despite a UN Security Council resolution calling for an immediate cease-fire.

Nearly 41,600 people have since been killed, mostly women and children, and over 96,200 others injured, according to local health authorities.

The Israeli onslaught has displaced almost the entire population of the territory amid an ongoing blockade that has led to severe shortages of food, clean water and medicine.

Israel faces accusations of genocide at the International Court of Justice for its actions in Gaza.

* Writing by Ikram Kouachi in Ankara