TEHRAN- As the U.S.-backed Israeli genocidal war on Gaza stretches to 340 days, the regime’s military continues to massacre more civilians.

Dozens of casualties, including children, have been reported over the last hours from the enclave. The carnage is continuing as 630,000 children have been deprived of school. Two academic years have now been lost by the ongoing assault on the entire enclave. 

In a statement issued on Monday, the Palestinian Ministry of Education, said Israeli strikes have killed more than 12,500 school-age children.  

Tens of thousands of others have sustained injuries; many have been left disabled for life. This is in addition to psychological trauma. 

The Israeli occupation forces (IOF) have destroyed dozens of schools and educational buildings across the Strip. 92 percent of the schools and buildings are no longer able to function, the ministry added. 

At least 17,000 children have also been orphaned since October 7, 2023.

The new school year in the Palestinian territory officially began on Monday but damaged classrooms have turned to shelter rooms for displaced families. 

Despite killing and injuring tens of thousands of children, the IOF has been nowhere close to eliminating tens of thousands of resistance fighters in the enclave who continue to inflict heavy losses on the IOF. Thousands of IOF tanks and military vehicles have also been blown up and continue to be targeted on a daily basis as the genocide enters 12 months. 

On Monday, IOF airstrikes targeted more residential buildings in the al-Bureij and al-Nuseirat refugee camps in the central Gaza Strip, killing seven Palestinians. The strikes have also reportedly caused heavy damage to infrastructure. 

The Gaza Civil Defense confirmed that an Israeli airstrike on a home in the Sabra area, south of Gaza City (in the north of the Strip), killed four people. 

A woman and her child also were killed in an Israeli airstrike that targeted several homes southeast of Khan Younis in the southern part of the blockaded Gaza enclave, according to reporters on the ground. 

In Rafah, two bodies were recovered from the rubble after a building in the northwest of the city was attacked with Israeli artillery shelling.  

Meanwhile, the IOF has ordered the evacuation of residential areas in northwest Gaza. This came after the Palestinian resistance forces launched rockets towards the Israeli city of Ashkelon. Northern Gaza was the first phase of the indiscriminate Israeli bombardment and ground invasions on October 8 and October 20 respectively. Since then, Tel Aviv has repeatedly declared victory over the Palestinian resistance groups in the north of Gaza but continues to invade it. 

As the occupation forces continue their aggression on the Gaza Strip by land, sea, and air since October 7 last year, the number of Palestinians killed has risen to around 41,000 and the number of injuries to nearly 95,000. The majority of them have been women and children. 

Experts say that these are not final numbers as thousands of victims, and possibly tens of thousands, remain under the rubble and on the streets with rescue and medical teams unable to reach them.