Health

Gaza live: Trump says Israel, Hamas agree on first phase of ceasefire, hostage release – Reuters

By Cynthia Osterman,Heather Timmons,John Mair,Kay Johnson

Copyright reuters

Gaza live: Trump says Israel, Hamas agree on first phase of ceasefire, hostage release - Reuters

A mourner reacts during the funeral of Palestinians who, according to medics, were killed in overnight Israeli strikes at Al-Shifa hospital in Gaza City, September 26, 2025. REUTERS/Ebrahim Hajjaj

The impact of the Israel-Hamas war has been devastating:

The war was triggered when Hamas-led militants attacked Israeli communities and military bases near Gaza on October 7, 2023. About 1,200 people, including more than 700 civilians, were killed, and 251 hostages were taken to Gaza.

Israel’s military response has devastated the tiny, crowded enclave, killing more than 67,000 Palestinians in Gaza, with nearly a third of the dead under the age of 18, according to Gaza health authorities.

A U.N. commission of inquiry last month assessed that Israel had committed genocide in Gaza – citing the scale of the killings as one of the acts backing up its finding. Israel called the finding biased and “scandalous”.

The Israeli military says 466 of its soldiers have been killed in combat, and 2,951 others wounded, since its Gaza ground operation began on October 27, 2023.

Hamas took 251 people back to Gaza as hostages after the October 7 attack. Israel says 48 hostages remain in Gaza, of whom 20 are believed to be alive.

DISPLACEMENT

Only about 18% of the Gaza Strip is not now subject to displacement orders or located within militarized zones, according to the United Nations. Many Palestinians have been displaced multiple times.

FOOD AND HUNGER

A global hunger monitor said in August that famine had taken hold in Gaza City and was likely to spread. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu dismissed the report as an “outright lie”.

At least 177 people – including 36 children – have died from starvation and malnutrition since famine was confirmed in parts of Gaza, according to the Ministry of Health in Gaza.