Gaza Death Toll Rises To 31 Amid Israeli Attacks

The Palestinian death toll from Israeli airstrikes in the Gaza Strip rose to 31, according to the Health Ministry on Sunday.

A ministry statement said six children and four women were among the victims.

The ministry said 275 people have also been injured in the Israeli attacks.

The ministry had earlier put the death toll at 29.

Israeli warplanes continued airstrikes in the Gaza Strip for the third day on Sunday, for what the army said was an "imminent threat of attacks" by the Islamic Jihad group.

The attacks came amid rising tensions across Palestinian territories following the detention of Bassam al-Saadi, a senior leader of Islamic Jihad, in an Israeli raid in the occupied West Bank city of Jenin early this week.

The Israeli army said Saturday that the Gaza offensive may last for a week. But the head of Israel's domestic intelligence service Shin Bet on Sunday recommended ending the ongoing military offensive in Gaza, saying the onslaught achieved its goals by dealing a heavy blow to the Islamic Jihad group. -