GAZA CITY, Palestine

At least 48 more Palestinians were killed in Israeli attacks in the Gaza Strip, pushing up the overall death toll since last Oct. 7 to 40,786, the Health Ministry in the enclave said on Monday.

A ministry statement added that some 94,224 other people have been injured in the assault.

“Israeli forces killed 48 people and injured 70 others in three ‘massacres’ of families in the last 24 hours,” the ministry said.

“Many people are still trapped under the rubble and on the roads as rescuers are unable to reach them,” it added.

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

An ongoing blockade of Gaza has led to severe shortages of food, clean water and medicine, leaving much of the region in ruins.

Israel faces accusations of genocide at the International Court of Justice, which has ordered a halt to military operations in the southern city of Rafah, where over one million Palestinians had sought refuge before the area was invaded on May 6.

*Writing by Mohammad Sio