Palestinians carry away the body of a man killed in Israeli bombardment from the morgue of the Al-Shifa hospital in Gaza City on March 15, 2024, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Hamas movement. (PHOTO / AFP)

JERUSALEM/GAZA - The Israeli military said on Monday that it had taken over the Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City, as the Palestinian death toll in the Gaza Strip due to the ongoing Israeli attacks has risen to more than 31,700.

Israeli troops have been continuing the military operation since overnight into Monday afternoon, claiming it had killed at least 20 militants. 

Al-Shifa, the largest hospital in the Gaza Strip, has been previously targeted by the Israeli army.

The World Health Organization has expressed concern about the developments in the hospital. "Hospitals should never be battlegrounds. We are terribly worried about the situation at Al-Shifa Hospital in northern Gaza, which is endangering health workers, patients and civilians," Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the WHO director-general, said on social media platform X.

The fatalities include Faiq Mabhuoch, head of the Operations Directorate of Hamas' Internal Security, the military said, adding that Mabhuoch was killed in a clash with Israeli troops at the hospital, "where he operated and advanced terrorist activity"

Heavy gunfire could be heard in videos circulating on social media, and Palestinian health authorities confirmed that Israeli troops had utilized heavy weaponry to attack the hospital, causing multiple casualties.

Israel Defense Forces Spokesman Daniel Hagari announced the raid in a video statement in the morning, claiming that Hamas militants were regrouping in the Al-Shifa complex.

ALSO READ: Israeli troops raid Gaza's Al Shifa Hospital

A total of 20 militants were killed and dozens of "suspects" were arrested and are undergoing interrogation, according to the military.

The fatalities include Faiq Mabhuoch, head of the Operations Directorate of Hamas' Internal Security, the military said, adding that Mabhuoch was killed in a clash with Israeli troops at the hospital, "where he operated and advanced terrorist activity".

"Numerous" weapons were located in the room adjacent to where the Hamas official was killed, the army noted.

A young Palestinian man injured in Israeli bombardment lies on the ground as he awaits medical attention at the Al-Shifa hospital in Gaza City on March 15, 2024, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Hamas movement. (PHOTO / AFP)

Also on Monday, the Hamas-run Health Ministry said in a press statement that a total of 31,726 Palestinians in the Gaza Strip had died, with 73,792 others wounded, because of the Israeli attacks.

The Israeli army killed 81 Palestinians and wounded 116 others during the past 24 hours, according to the ministry.

The statement noted that some victims remained under the rubble amid heavy Israeli bombardment and a lack of civil defense and ambulance crews.

READ MORE: UNICEF: Over 13,000 children killed in Gaza in Israel offensive

Israel launched a large-scale offensive against the Palestinian Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) in Gaza to retaliate against a Hamas rampage through the southern Israeli border on Oct 7, 2023, during which about 1,200 people were killed and more than 200 were taken hostage.