Israel-Gaza war: Hamas reports 241 deaths in Gaza inside 24 hours

Israel declared war on Hamas, one day after the Palestinian militant group conducted a brutal attack | Getty Images
Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry has said at least 241 people were killed in the past 24 hours, as Israel’s military operation continues in the territory.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has called the war a “grave crime” against his people.
Israel’s army chief Herzi Halevi said the conflict with Hamas would continue for “many more months”.
Israel says it hit more than 100 sites on Tuesday, amid reports of impending ground operations in central Gaza.
Loud explosions could be heard from the Gaza Strip across the perimeter with Israel in the early hours of Wednesday.
In the occupied West Bank, Palestinian medical sources say six Palestinians were killed in an overnight Israeli drone strike in the Nur Shams refugee camp in Tulkarem.
Gaza’s health ministry said 382 people had also been injured over the same 24 hours.
According to the ministry, at least 20,915 Palestinians have been killed – mostly children and women – in more than 11 weeks of fighting.
The claims by the warring sides have not been independently verified.
The war began on 7 October after Hamas led a wave of deadly attacks on communities inside Israel. Some 1,200 people, mainly civilians, were killed. About 240 people were taken back to Gaza as hostages, and a number of them were later released.