Gaza Death Toll Surpasses 69,000 as Israel-Hamas Body Exchanges Continue Under Fragile Ceasefire

Gaza health authorities reported that the Palestinian death toll in the Israel-Hamas war has surpassed 69,000, as both sides continue exchanging bodies under the tenuous ceasefire agreement.

The significant increase in reported casualties comes from bodies recovered from beneath rubble across the devastated Gaza Strip since the October 10 ceasefire began, along with newly identified remains and Palestinians killed in recent strikes that Israel claims targeted remaining militants.

Despite its fragility, the ceasefire appears to be holding. Israeli authorities returned 15 Palestinian bodies to Gaza on Saturday, according to hospital officials, following militants' return of an Israeli hostage's remains the previous day.

These exchanges of the deceased form the core component of the ceasefire's initial phase, which requires Hamas to return all hostage remains as quickly as possible. The agreement aims to conclude the deadliest and most destructive conflict ever fought between Israel and the Palestinian militant group.

The Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023, resulted in approximately 1,200 deaths and 251 hostages taken.

Concurrently on Saturday, Israeli settlers conducted two attacks against Palestinian farmers, paramedics, activists, and journalists in the occupied West Bank, amid escalating settler violence in the territory.

Nearly a month into the ceasefire, Gaza authorities continue recovering bodies among widespread destruction, working with limited equipment and resources.

Gaza's Health Ministry, part of the Hamas-run government but staffed by medical professionals, reported that the total death toll since October 7, 2023, has reached 69,169. Independent experts generally consider the ministry's detailed records reliable.

The ministry indicated that 284 additional fatalities were recently added to the cumulative count after identity verification conducted between October 31 and November 7.

Over the past three days, ten bodies were brought to Gaza hospitals—nine retrieved from rubble and one newly deceased—along with six injured individuals. Many Palestinians remain missing, according to the ministry.

Since the ceasefire implementation on October 10, the Health Ministry reports 241 people have been killed in Gaza.

Israeli officials confirmed Saturday that the remains returned the previous night belonged to Lior Rudaeff, an Israeli hostage who died fighting Hamas during the initial attack, according to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office.

The Hostages and Missing Families Forum noted that Rudaeff, born in Argentina, relocated to Kibbutz Nir Yitzhak in southern Israel as a child. He volunteered as an ambulance driver for over 40 years and served on the community's emergency response team.

For each Israeli hostage returned, Israel releases the remains of 15 Palestinians. Following Rudaeff's return, Israel transferred 15 Palestinian bodies to Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis, central Gaza.

Since the ceasefire began, Palestinian militants have returned the remains of 23 hostages, including Rudaeff, with five still remaining in Gaza. Israel has handed over 300 Palestinian bodies thus far.

Gaza health officials have faced challenges identifying the bodies without access to DNA testing kits, having identified only 89 of the returned remains according to Gaza's Health Ministry.

Palestinian health authorities reported that 11 people were injured in an Israeli settler attack in the West Bank, including journalists, medics, international activists, and farmers. Settler violence has reached unprecedented levels during this year's olive harvest.

This incident follows a UN humanitarian office report stating that Israeli settler attacks against Palestinians and their property in the West Bank during October exceeded any month since record-keeping began in 2006, with over 260 attacks averaging eight incidents daily.

Activists and medical personnel have joined this year's olive harvest to help Palestinian farmers safely access and return from their fields, but these groups have repeatedly faced attacks in recent weeks.

Video footage circulating in Palestinian media showed injured individuals—bandaged and bloodied—at a West Bank hospital following Saturday's attack in the town of Beita.

Jonathan Pollak, a longtime solidarity activist present during the attack, told AP he was picking olives when dozens of masked Israeli settlers armed with clubs suddenly descended, chasing the group and throwing rocks.

Pollak described witnessing five settlers attacking a journalist and her security guard, beating them and denting the journalist's helmet. He himself was struck in the back of the head with a rock and required hospitalization.

After his hospital release, Pollak emphasized that viewing the attack as an isolated incident by extremist settlers would be incorrect. He characterized it as part of a recurring pattern, stating, "This is just one finger in the iron fist of Israeli policy aiming to ethnically cleanse Palestinians from their land."

Rights organizations note that arrests for settler violence rarely occur, with prosecutions even less common. Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported in 2022 that according to police statistics, charges were filed in only 3.8% of settler violence cases, with most investigations opened and closed without action.

Palestinian paramedics also reported another settler attack Saturday in the nearby village of Burin. The Palestinian Red Crescent stated settlers injured four international activists and one 57-year-old man.

The military did not immediately respond to inquiries about either incident.