Gaza's Health Ministry has confirmed the receipt of 15 more Palestinian bodies from Israeli authorities on Friday, November 14, in a continued exchange mediated by the International Committee of the Red Cross . This latest delivery brings the total number of Palestinian remains repatriated under the US-brokered ceasefire agreement to 330 . The process of identifying the deceased remains profoundly difficult, with Gaza's Health Ministry reporting that only 95 of the total bodies returned have been formally identified, a challenge exacerbated by a critical lack of DNA testing kits in the besieged territory .
The exchange of the deceased occurs alongside a devastatingly high death toll from the conflict. According to the Gaza Health Ministry, Israel's military offensive has killed more than 69,100 Palestinians in Gaza . A joint investigation by The Guardian and other outlets, citing a classified Israeli military intelligence database, indicates that the vast majority of those killed have been civilians, with an estimated civilian death rate of 83% . This figure suggests a scale of civilian casualties that is extremely high for modern warfare. Palestinian authorities have also reported that many of the bodies handed over by Israel show signs of abuse and were returned without names, forcing families to try to identify their loved ones through physical markings or clothing .
As the body exchanges continue, the living in Gaza face a rapidly deteriorating humanitarian situation with the onset of winter. Displaced families, whose numbers have swelled into the millions, are struggling to survive in makeshift shelters unable to withstand the rain . In Gaza City, fathers like Abdel Rahim Halawa work desperately to secure tarps over tents made of wood and plastic, their mattresses and blankets already drenched . Some, like Saed Salhi and his family, have taken shelter in the unstable rubble of destroyed buildings, knowing the structures are dangerous but having no alternative for protection from the severe cold .
Simultaneously, a surge of violence by Israeli settlers against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank has drawn international condemnation. The UN Human Rights Office reported that more than 260 such attacks were recorded in October alone, the highest number in any month since 2006 . The UN human rights chief, Volker Türk, has urged an end to the violence and for Israel to hold perpetrators accountable . In a recent spate of incidents, six Palestinian teenagers, aged 15 to 17, were shot and killed by Israeli forces in the West Bank over a two-week period, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry there.