Israel targeted eastern Deir Al-Balah even as the ceasefire held, while the World Health Organization carried out the first medical evacuations since the truce began.

Israeli artillery again targeted eastern Deir Al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip, despite the ongoing ceasefire and the Palestinian Resistance’s reaffirmation of its commitment to it, Al-Jazeera reported. 

At the same time, the World Health Organization (WHO) evacuated 41 patients from Gaza for treatment abroad.

In Deir Al-Balah, the bodies of 54 Palestinians who had been detained by Israeli occupation forces were buried after funeral prayers were performed. 

The bodies were transferred from the Nasser Medical Complex in Khan Yunis to a mass grave in the central governorate.

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According to the Gaza Government Media Office, official examinations confirmed that the occupation forces committed grave violations against the detainees, executing several of them by hanging or shooting at close range.

The Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza also reported that it received 30 additional bodies on Wednesday from the Israeli occupation through the Red Cross, bringing the total number of returned bodies to 195. 

The ministry noted that many of the bodies showed signs of severe abuse, including torture, beatings, handcuffing, and blindfolding.

So far, the families have identified 57 of the martyrs, while the 54 unidentified bodies have been buried in a designated cemetery in the central area.

.@WHO led today medical evacuation of 41 critical patients and 145 companions out of #Gaza – first since the ceasefire.

Around 15 000 patients are still waiting for approval to receive medical care outside Gaza. We continue to call on countries to show their solidarity and for… pic.twitter.com/GTK1UGGvJy

— Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus (@DrTedros) October 22, 2025

WHO Evacuates 41 Patients

World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus announced on Thursday that 41 critically ill patients and 145 companions were evacuated from Gaza, the first medical evacuation since the ceasefire came into effect.

In a post on the social media platform X, Ghebreyesus stressed the urgent need to expand medical evacuations, noting that around 15,000 people in Gaza are still waiting for treatment abroad. 

He called on countries to demonstrate solidarity by opening all possible routes to facilitate medical transfers.

The first phase of the ceasefire agreement in Gaza took effect on October 10, under a plan proposed by US President Donald Trump, whose administration has supported the ongoing genocide in the Strip.

Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza, which began on October 8, 2023, has so far claimed the lives of 68,234 Palestinians and wounded 170,373 others—most of them women and children—while destroying about 90 percent of the enclave’s civilian infrastructure.

(PC, AJA)