Smoke and explosion following Israeli bombardment inside Gaza, as seen from southern Israel, Feb 11, 2024. (PHOTO / AP)

DUBAI/UNITED NATIONS/CAIRO/AMMAN - At least 30,631 Palestinians have been killed and 72,043 have been wounded in Israeli military offensive on Gaza since Oct 7, the Gaza health ministry said in a statement on Tuesday.

Some 97 Palestinians were killed and 123 wounded in the past 24 hours, the ministry added.

UN General Assembly President Dennis Francis on Monday called for action to end violence and suffering in Gaza.

"First and foremost, an immediate humanitarian ceasefire must be implemented. The bombardment must stop, now," Francis told the General Assembly plenary meeting on the use of the veto, describing the situation in Gaza as "catastrophic," and highlighting the "shocking" death toll and the impact on children and families.

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UN General Assembly President Dennis Francis speaks during the General Assembly plenary meeting on the use of the veto in the Security Council, held at the UN headquarters in New York, on March 4, 2024. (PHOTO / XINHUA)

The General Assembly met to examine the US veto of the latest Security Council draft resolution calling for a ceasefire in war-torn Gaza, where a grim, forewarned landscape of famine has seen babies and children die of starvation in recent days.

Francis said that from the UN's inception in 1945, the world body and the Security Council have an overarching duty to save generations from the scourge of war, and called for the international community to act now to end Gaza crisis.

Meanwhile, Gaza-ruling Hamas continued talks on Monday with mediators from Egypt, Qatar, and the United States to reach a ceasefire in Gaza.

Egyptian security sources confirmed to Xinhua that "remarkable progress" was made on Sunday, the first day of the current ceasefire negotiations in Cairo, without providing further details.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, the security source said that topics being discussed include a halt to fighting for 40 days during the first phase of the proposed truce, accompanied by the exchange of 40 Israeli hostages, including the elders and civilians, for 400 Palestinian prisoners.

The deal will also ensure entry of 60,000 movable houses, 120,000 tents and 500 aid trucks every day, the source added.

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Palestinians rescue survivors after an Israelikm strike on Shaheen family house in Rafah, Gaza, Feb 24, 2024. (PHOTO / AP)

Also on Monday, King Abdullah II of Jordan on highlighted the need for maximum efforts to achieve an immediate and permanent ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and to protect civilians, the state-run Petra news agency reported.

He made the remarks during a meeting in Amman with a delegation representing Arab lawmakers in the Israeli parliament, or Knesset, said the report.

The king said Jordan will continue to push for an end to the war and provide humanitarian, relief, and medical assistance by land and air to Gaza, while warning of the danger of continuing the war on the Palestinian enclave and escalating tensions in the West Bank and Jerusalem.

He renewed his commitment to protect and care for the Islamic and Christian holy sites in Jerusalem under the Hashemite custodianship.