The Palestinian death toll in the Gaza Strip from ongoing Israeli attacks has risen to 34,454, the Hamas-run Health Ministry said on Sunday.
The ministry said in a press statement that the Israeli army killed 66 Palestinians and wounded 138 others in the past 24 hours, bringing the total death toll to 34,454 and injuries to 77,575 since the Israel-Hamas conflict broke out in October last year.
According to multiple Palestinian media outlets, Israel conducted air strikes in the southern Gaza Strip city of Rafah from Sunday night to Monday morning, which killed at least 20 people and caused many injuries.
The strikes took place just ahead of the new round of truce talks between Hamas leaders and Egyptian mediators in Cairo, as a Hamas delegation is scheduled to visit Cairo on Monday.
More than 200 days have passed since the eruption of the Gaza conflict. Attacks from Israel inflicted mass destruction to the infrastructure and a grave humanitarian crisis in the region.
Palestinian Minister of Transport and Communications Tareq Zaarab estimated on Sunday that the losses in Gaza's transport and communications sectors have exceeded 3 billion U.S. dollars when reporting at a session of the Palestinian government held in the city of Ramallah in the West Bank.
Palestinian death toll in Gaza reaches 34,454
Palestinian death toll in Gaza reaches 34,454
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi is set to visit Kazakhstan and Tajikistan to enhance diplomatic relations and cooperation under the Belt and Road Initiative, Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin announced at a press briefing in Beijing on Thursday.
At the invitation of Kazakh Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Murat Nurtleu, and Tajik Foreign Minister Sirojiddin Muhriddin, Wang Yi, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, will attend the meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Council of Ministers of Foreign Affairs and pay official visits to Kazakhstan and Tajikistan from May 18 to 21.
"Kazakhstan and Tajikistan are China's friendly neighbors and important partners in the high-quality development of the Belt and Road Initiative. Under the strategic leadership of President Xi Jinping, (Kazakh) President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, and (Tajik) President Emomali Rahmon, China's bilateral relations with the two countries have maintained high-level development, and the bilateral efforts are under way to build a community with a shared future," Wang noted.
"During the visit, Wang will meet with leaders of the two countries, hold talks with their foreign ministers, and exchange views on bilateral relations and issues of common interest concerning international and regional matters," said the spokesman.
"China believes that this visit will fully implement the consensus reached by President Xi Jinping with the heads of state of the two countries, deepen cooperation in various fields, promote cooperation on the high-quality construction of the Belt and Road Initiative, and make new contributions to maintaining peace, stability, and development in the region," Wang said.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi to visit Kazakhstan, Tajikistan
