The Deadliest 24 hours of the Gaza War
Dr Brian Brivati, Executive Director, Britain Palestine Project
In the past 24 hours, Gaza has witnessed intense Israeli military actions alongside a rapidly worsening humanitarian crisis, this may come to be the deadliest in the conflict to date. Israeli forces expanded ground operations into central Gaza for the first time, backed by heavy air and artillery strikes. Over 100 Palestinians have been killed in this period – including many gunned down while desperately trying to obtain food – and at least 19 people died of starvation as critical supplies remain cut off.
Military Developments
Israeli forces escalated their ground campaign in Gaza, pushing into Deir al-Balah (central Gaza) on Monday for the first time since the war began. Dozens of tanks and troops entered southern and eastern districts of Deir al-Balah, an area previously spared from ground incursions. The Israeli army had warned residents a day earlier to evacuate, posting messages in Arabic on Sunday telling people to “immediately evacuate southward toward Al-Mawasi” for their safety. Medics report that as the offensive began, tank shelling in Deir al-Balah hit eight houses and three mosques, killing at least three Palestinians and wounding several others. The assault forced remaining families in the area to flee west toward the coastline and Khan Younis. Israeli military spokesmen said the army is “operating with intensity to eliminate terrorists and dismantle terrorist infrastructure” in new areas, confirming it is expanding operations beyond previous zones.
Israeli commanders had previously held off entering central Deir al-Balah partly out of concern for hostages still held by Hamas. Israeli sources indicate the military suspects that some of the hostages captured by Palestinian fighters in 2023 may be hidden in Deir al-Balah, and that at least 20 hostages are believed to still be alive in Gaza. This latest push has raised fears among hostage families about their safety. Families of Israeli captives demanded explanations from the army on how it will protect the hostages during expanded assaults, as heavy bombardment resumes in areas where captives might be held.
Intensive air and artillery strikes continued across Gaza. In the southern town of Khan Younis, an Israeli airstrike in the early hours of Monday hit a tent sheltering displaced civilians, killing at least five members of one family (a father, his wife, two of their young children, and a relative). The family had been living in a tent in the Al-Mawasi area (a zone previously deemed a refuge for evacuees). Other strikes overnight hit multiple tents in Al-Mawasi and at least one residential building in Gaza City, according to Gaza health officials, causing additional casualties (numbers still being confirmed). There was no immediate Israeli comment on these specific strikes, though the military routinely asserts that Hamas fighters operate among civilian areas and thus blames Hamas for collateral damage.
In the last 24 hours, civilian deaths have mounted rapidly. On Sunday alone, at least 94 Palestinians were killed by Israeli fire while seeking food aid across Gaza. The deadliest incidents of this war’s recent phase unfolded in northern Gaza as civilians gathered to receive desperately needed food. Near the Zikim crossing (north of Beit Lahia), Israeli tanks and snipers opened fire on a large crowd of Palestinians who surged toward a UN World Food Programme aid convoy bringing flour into Gaza over 80 people were killed in that one event), but fatalities occurred in the south as well, as starving crowds approached aid distribution points. Overnight and into Monday (July 21), continued airstrikes and shootings added to the toll: Gaza health officials reported at least 13 people, including women and children, were killed by Israeli strikes since Sunday night. Early Monday, Israeli troops again fired on Palestinians waiting for aid, this time near the Netzarim corridor in central Gaza, killing at least 2 and wounding others. And in the Khan Younis tent strike mentioned above, five family members lost their lives. By midday Monday, local authorities said at least 27 people had been killed in Gaza since the morning in various attacks. These numbers are expected to rise as rescue teams pull more victims from rubble and as sporadic strikes continue. The Gaza Ministry of Health – which the UN deems the most reliable source on casualties – announced that the cumulative death toll in Gaza has now exceeded 58,800 Palestinians since the war began in October 2023. (For context, this is up from 58,573 deaths as of last week, reflecting the deadly pace of recent days.) More than half of those killed have been women and children, and over 139,000 people have been wounded in Gaza so far. The scale of suffering is staggering: Gaza’s toll vastly eclipses that of any recent conflict in the region, and bodies continue to accumulate amid ongoing fighting.
In sum, the past 24 hours in Gaza have been marked by escalating military action and deepening civilian suffering. Israeli offensives have expanded to new areas, and civilian casualties – from both bombs and hunger – are climbing. Infrastructure damage and displacement are compounding one another: as Israel pushes people from one area to another, the few remaining aid lifelines are further strained. Gaza’s humanitarian conditions are the worst in living memory, according to relief experts, and deteriorating by the hour. Without a halt in fighting and a significant influx of aid, officials warn that the coming days could bring even greater loss of life among Gaza’s 2.3 million residents.