CAIRO, December 26. /TASS/. Around 40 Palestinians were killed in Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip in the past day, the enclave’s Health Ministry said in a statement.

"As many as 38 people were killed and another 137 suffered injuries in the Israeli aggression in the past 24 hours," the statement reads. According to the ministry, "the death toll has reached 45,399 since the start of Israel’s military operation, while 107,940 were injured."

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, launching airstrikes on Gaza as well as some parts of Lebanon and Syria before starting a ground operation in the Palestinian enclave. Hostilities in Gaza continue to this day.