Palestinian civil defense teams have launched a new operation to recover an estimated 1,072 bodies trapped beneath 147 destroyed buildings across the Gaza Strip. The challenging humanitarian effort is proceeding with extremely limited equipment, relying on just a single excavator, loader, and truck. Civil Defense spokesman Mahmoud Basal urged the international community to pressure Israel “to allow heavy machinery to enter Gaza” to assist with the vital rescue operations. While crews successfully recovered 333 sets of remains during the mission’s initial phase, health officials report the overall death toll since October 2023 has now reached 73,269.