CAIRO, October 20. /TASS/. As many as 4,218 Palestinians have been killed since the latest outbreak of tensions in the Middle East on October 7, the Palestinian health ministry wrote on its Telegram channel on Friday.

According to the ministry, at least 4,137 have been killed in the Gaza Strip and 81 more - in the West Bank. Around 14,400 people have been wounded, including some 1,400 in the West Bank.

Tensions flared up in the Middle East after Hamas militants from the Gaza Strip attacked Israeli territory. Hamas views its attack as a response to Israeli authorities’ steps against the Al-Aqsa Mosque on Jerusalem’s Temple Mount. Israel declared a total blockade of the Gaza Strip and launched bombardments of the enclave and some areas in Lebanon and Syria. Clashes are also reported in the West Bank. In Israel, at least 1,500 people have lost their lives and almost 4,500 have been wounded.