Lloyd Austin: Israel has killed 25,000 Palestinian women and children since October

Israel has killed more than 25,000 Palestinian women and children since the attack by the Hamas militant group on October 7, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said, AFP reported.

"That's over 25,000 women and children," Austin told lawmakers when asked about the figure during a House Armed Services Committee hearing.

The United States has been supporting Israel since an unprecedented attack by Hamas in October that killed an estimated 1,160 people.

Israel responded to the attack with a merciless attack on Gaza that killed more than 30,000 people, according to the coastal territory's health ministry.

The figure provided by Austin is in the same range and comes at a time when Washington is pushing for a ceasefire and a reduction in civilian casualties in Gaza. /BGNES