BEIRUT, September 26. /TASS/. At least 39 people were killed and 86 were injured over the past 24 hours alone as a result of the ongoing fighting, the enclave’s Health Ministry said on its Telegram channel.

According to the agency, the overall number of victims has increased to 41,534 since the Israeli-Palestinian conflict escalated on October 7, 2023, and 96,092 victims have been taken to regional medical facilities.

Tensions flared up again in the Middle East on October 7, 2023, when Hamas militants staged a surprise attack on Israeli territory from Gaza, killing residents of Israeli border settlements and taking over 250 hostages, including women, children and the elderly. Hamas described its attack as retaliation for the aggressive actions taken by Israeli authorities against the Al-Aqsa Mosque on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem’s Old City. In response, Israel declared a total blockade of the Gaza Strip, home to 2.3 million Palestinians before the crisis, launching air strikes on Gaza as well as some parts of Lebanon and Syria before starting a ground operation in the Palestinian enclave.