Pictures of the week: Latest on Palestine-Israel conflict

The Palestinian death toll in the Gaza Strip has climbed to 12,300, including 5,000 children, amid Israel's persistent air strikes following Hamas' attack in southern Israel on October 7, according to the Hamas-run health authorities in Gaza.

Many Americans have participated in demonstrations voicing their support for the Palestinians after Israel unleashed its deadliest air strikes on the Gaza Strip. Thousands of people have marched across New York City, with the headquarters of Fox News being one of their destinations.

Amid fears that Palestinians would be pushed out of the Gaza Strip as the Israeli military steps up its offensive into the coastal enclave, European Union (EU) foreign policy chief Josep Borrell has made a trip to the region, articulating the EU's position on the Palestine-Israel conflict.

Gaza must be governed by a reinforced Palestinian Authority once Israel completes its war against Hamas, Borrell said on Friday in a joint press statement with Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh in Ramallah.

There can be no "forced displacement of Palestinian people out of Gaza, no territorial changes, no reoccupation by Israel or a safe haven for Hamas," he said.

Shtayyeh expressed regret that Borrell had not been able to visit the Palestinian enclave.

"I know that you have been visiting certain areas in Israel and you have seen what you have seen," he said. "It's a pity that you did not ... see Gaza. It's a pity that you did not" see the tens of thousands of Palestinians who were killed and injured by Israeli air strikes.

A number of countries have been trying to evacuate their citizens from Israel and Gaza as the ongoing war puts many foreign nationals at risk. The Netherlands on Friday deployed its navy vessel Zr.Ms. Holland to the Mediterranean Sea.

Israeli raids in the occupied West Bank have intensified since October 7. A major incursion launched by Israeli security forces in the city of Jenin has destroyed roads and killed several Hamas militants. Escalating violence in the West Bank has added to fears that the territory could spiral out of control.