CAIRO, October 12. /TASS/. Over 50 medical workers have been killed by Israeli army shelling of the Gaza Strip, Palestinian Health Minister Mai Al-Kaila said.

"The Israeli bombardment of the Gaza Strip killed more than 50 medical workers," Al Arabiya TV reported, quoting the minister's statement. According to the public health official, "Israel is preventing doctors from entering Gaza from the West Bank and Egypt."

The minister warned of the risks of "epidemics and an environmental catastrophe that could spread beyond the borders" of the exclave due to the power outage. The day before, the only power plant in the Gaza Strip ceased operations due to depleted fuel supplies. The Palestinian Health Ministry said that medical equipment in hospital intensive care units was in danger of being shut down completely, and the shut-off of refrigeration units in morgues could lead to an environmental catastrophe.

Electricity and fuel supplies to the Palestinian exclave were interrupted on October 8. On Monday, Israel announced the beginning of a full blockade of the Gaza Strip, while water supplies to the exclave were also cut off.

Tensions flared up again in the Middle East on October 7 when militants from the radical Palestinian Hamas movement staged a surprise attack on Israeli territory from the Gaza Strip.

Hamas described its attack as a response to the aggressive actions of Israeli authorities against the Al-Aqsa Mosque in the Old City of Jerusalem. Israel has announced a total blockade of the Gaza Strip as it has been delivering rocket attacks on Gaza as well as some districts in Lebanon and Syria. Clashes are also taking place in the West Bank.

According to the latest official data, more than 1,200 Palestinians have been killed since the renewed outbreak of violence, while almost 5,900 others have suffered wounds. In Israel, over 1,500 people have lost their lives and roughly 4,000 have been wounded.