Gaza death toll passes 10,000 with many more still buried under rubble

The death toll from Israel's month-long brutal bombardment of the Gaza Strip surpassed 10,000 on Monday, with that harrowing number likely to rise as thousands more are missing.

Gaza health ministry spokesperson Ashraf al-Qidreh told media on Monday afternoon that 10,022 people had been killed in the enclave since Israel began relentlessly bombing the Gaza Strip on 7 October.

Almost 300 people were killed overnight Sunday into Monday alone by intensive Israeli bombardment, al-Qidreh said.

Civilians made up the vast majority of those killed in the Israeli assault on Gaza, including more than 4,000 children, according to the health ministry. About 25,000 people have been injured.

With some 2,300 people still missing, according to health ministry figures given on Sunday, the death toll is likely to continue to shoot up.

Medical Aid for Palestinians (MAP), an NGO working on the ground in Gaza to provide the sick and the injured with desperately needed healthcare, said the death toll was "no surprise to anyone, given Israel’s indiscriminate bombardment of civilian homes, hospitals, refugee camps, and schools."

"Meanwhile, UK ministers and politicians continue to voice their support for Israel’s assault, and shamefully refuse to back a ceasefire," MAP said in its statement.

"Our colleagues are running out of food and water. Gaza is running out of time. We must have a #CeasefireNOW."

Israel launched its aerial assault on Gaza 31 days ago after Palestinian group Hamas launched a surprise attack on Israel that killed 1,400 Israelis, following months of assaults on the occupied West Bank and a more than 15-year blockade on Gaza.

There have been widespread calls for an immediate ceasefire for Gaza, but Israel, backed by staunch allies including the US and the UK, has persisted in its mission.

A total siege imposed by Israel soon after the bombing began stopped essentials including food and medicine being let in.

A trickle of aid far less than the amount needed has since been allowed into Gaza, and Israeli ministers have said that fuel needed to power generators – including those at hospitals – will not be allowed in under any circumstances.