The devastating conflict between Israel and Hamas has tragically seen the Palestinian death toll in Gaza soar past 65,000 as of Wednesday, September 17, 2025, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry. This grim milestone comes as Israeli ground troops and tanks continue their deep push into Gaza City, forcing countless residents to flee an increasingly devastated urban landscape.
In preparation for the ground invasion, Israel’s military confirmed that its air force and artillery units had conducted over 150 strikes on Gaza City in recent days. These intense bombardments have leveled numerous high-rise buildings, many of which were surrounded by makeshift tent camps housing thousands of displaced Palestinians. Israel asserts that these towers were utilized by Hamas for military surveillance against its advancing forces.
Hospital officials reported that at least 16 individuals, including women and children, tragically lost their lives in overnight strikes. The Health Ministry, under the Hamas-run government, updated the total fatalities in Gaza to 65,062, with a staggering 165,697 wounded since Hamas’ October 7, 2023, attack.
Israel’s ongoing offensive has resulted in widespread destruction across Gaza, displacing approximately 90% of its population and precipitating a catastrophic humanitarian crisis, with experts now declaring a state of famine within Gaza City.
While the Ministry’s figures do not differentiate between civilian and militant casualties, these statistics are widely considered reliable by both the United Nations and numerous independent analysts.
Concurrently, a mass exodus of Palestinians continued from the city, with people leaving by car and on foot. To facilitate further evacuations, Israel established an additional humanitarian corridor south of Gaza City, which remained open for two days starting Wednesday, September 17, 2025, at noon.
Devastating Toll: Children and Families Among Latest Casualties
A tragic majority of those killed in the recent Israeli overnight strikes were from the famine-stricken Gaza City, Shifa Hospital officials confirmed. Among the victims were a child and his mother, who perished in their apartment within the Shati refugee camp.
Further devastation struck central Gaza where an Israeli strike on a home in the urban Nuseirat refugee camp claimed three lives, including a pregnant woman, as reported by Al-Awda Hospital. In a separate incident, a family of three – two parents and their child – were killed when their tent in the Muwasi area, west of Khan Younis, was hit. Their bodies were received by Nasser Hospital officials.
The Gaza Health Ministry also reported that Rantisi Hospital for children in Gaza City suffered multiple Israeli strikes on Tuesday night, sharing images on social media depicting damage to the roof, water tanks, and rubble scattered in a hospital hallway.
These attacks forced approximately half of the hospital’s 80 patients to evacuate. Despite the danger, around 40 patients, including four children in intensive care and eight premature babies, remained at the facility, cared for by 30 dedicated medical staff, according to the Ministry.
Fikr Shalltoot, Gaza director for Medical Aid for Palestinians, stated, ‘This attack has once again shattered the illusion that hospitals or any place in Gaza are safe from Israel’s actions.’
The Israeli military announced it is investigating the strikes, reiterating its past claims that Hamas deliberately embeds military infrastructure within civilian locations.
Colonel Avichay Adraee, the military’s Arabic-language spokesman, confirmed on social media that a new evacuation route southwards was opened for two days, commencing Wednesday, September 17, 2025, at noon.
However, vast numbers of Palestinians in northern Gaza remained isolated. The Palestinian Telecommunications Regulatory Authority, operating from the occupied West Bank, reported that Israeli strikes on key network lines in northern Gaza completely disrupted internet and telephone services on Wednesday morning, September 17, 2025. The Associated Press reported difficulty in contacting many individuals within Gaza City.
Before evacuation warnings preceded the offensive, an estimated 1 million Palestinians resided in the Gaza City area. The Israeli military estimates that approximately 350,000 people have since departed the city.
The UN’s own estimates suggest that over 238,000 of the approximately 1 million people believed to be living in the city have fled northern Gaza in the last month, while hundreds of thousands more have remained.
Global Outcry: Aid Organizations and Qatar Condemn Escalating Offensive
On Wednesday, September 17, 2025, a powerful coalition of prominent aid organizations issued an urgent plea to the international community, demanding robust action to halt Israel’s offensive on Gaza City. This call followed a UN expert commission’s finding, released just a day prior, that Israel was engaging in genocide within the Palestinian enclave – an allegation Israel vehemently denies.
“What unfolds in Gaza is not merely an unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe, but what the UN Commission of Inquiry has now explicitly concluded is genocide,” the joint statement from the aid groups declared. “Nations must deploy every political, economic, and legal instrument at their disposal to intervene. Empty rhetoric and insufficient responses are no longer acceptable. This critical juncture demands decisive action.”
The impassioned message bore the signatures of leaders from more than 20 aid organizations actively working in Gaza, including respected groups like the Norwegian Refugee Council, Anera, and Save the Children.
Furthermore, on Wednesday, September 17, 2025, Qatar’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a strong condemnation of Israel’s ground offensive in Gaza. The ministry’s statement on X characterized the operation as an ‘extension of the war of genocide’ against the Palestinian people.
Qatar’s condemnation stems in part from its outrage over an Israeli strike the previous week, which resulted in the deaths of five Hamas members and a local security official.
Israel’s Persistent Push into Devastated Gaza City
An Israeli military graphic indicated that their forces aim to establish control over virtually the entire Gaza Strip, with the exception of a significant coastal area, by the conclusion of the ongoing operation.
Throughout the conflict, Israeli forces have launched numerous large-scale incursions into Gaza City, leading to widespread displacement and severe destruction. However, these operations often saw militants subsequently regroup. This current push, however, involves a stated commitment from Israel to fully control the city – a region now facing critical famine conditions, according to expert assessments.
Speaking anonymously due to military protocols, an Israeli military official stated on Tuesday that they estimate 2,000 to 3,000 Hamas militants remain in Gaza City, along with their extensive tunnel networks. While Hamas’ military capabilities have been significantly degraded, the group primarily conducts guerrilla-style attacks, involving small squads planting explosives or assaulting military outposts before retreating.
The conflict in Gaza commenced with the brutal October 7, 2023, assault by Hamas-led militants on southern Israel, which resulted in the deaths of approximately 1,200 people, predominantly civilians, and the abduction of 251 others. Currently, 48 hostages are believed to still be held in Gaza, with less than half thought to be alive.