The ministry said Friday that 11,078 people had been killed since hostilities began 21 hospitals had gone out of service and 47 health centers were out of services KHAN YOUNIS, Gaza Strip: The Health Ministry in Hamas-run Gaza says the Palestinian death toll in the war has surpassed 11,000 people. The ministry said Friday that 11,078 people had been killed since hostilities began Oct. 7 when Hamas launched a surprise attack on Israel. The deaths include 4,506 children, the ministry’s statement said, adding that 21 hospitals had gone out of service and 47 health centers were out of services. More than 1,400 people have been killed in Israel, primarily in the initial Hamas attack, and 41 Israeli soldiers have been killed in Gaza since the ground offensive began. Meanwhile, thousands of Palestinians streamed onto Gaza’s only highway Friday, fleeing the combat zone in the north after Israel announced a window for safe passage and following strikes near hospitals that medical officials blamed on Israel. Amid an intensifying campaign of airstrikes and ground battles in Gaza City, the search for safety in the besieged enclave has grown increasingly desperate. Tens of thousands have walked south, where they face the prospect of ongoing bombardment and dire conditions. Others have crowded into and around hospitals, sleeping in operating rooms and wards. Gaza’s largest city is the focus of Israel’s campaign to crush Hamas following its deadly Oct. 7 surprise incursion.