Gazan civil defense teams have retrieved the bodies of at least 66 Palestinians from the rubble of destroyed houses, the agency said Tuesday.
In a statement, the service said 58 bodies were recovered in southern Gaza on Monday, while eight others were pulled out from under the rubble in northern Gaza.
The agency said civil defense teams and volunteers continue to search the rubble for more victims amid a lack of machinery to retrieve them.
The search for thousands of Gazans believed still buried under rubble began Monday, as residents expressed shock at the devastation wrought by Israel's 15-month genocidal war on the enclave.
The truce in the 15-month-old conflict, which has laid waste to the Gaza Strip and inflamed the Middle East, took effect earlier Sunday with the release of the first three hostages held by Hamas and 90 Palestinians freed from Israeli jails.
Now attention is starting to shift to the rebuilding of the coastal enclave which the Israeli military has demolished following the Hamas incursion of southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.
That assault caused 1,200 deaths with around 250 hostages taken into Gaza, according to Israeli tallies. In the genocide, more than 47,000 Palestinians have been killed, Gaza's Health Ministry says.
"We are searching for 10,000 martyrs whose bodies remain under the rubble," said Mahmoud Basal, spokesperson of the Palestinian Civil Emergency Services.
At least 2,840 bodies were melted and there were no traces of them, he said.
Displaced Gazan Mohamed Gomaa lost his brother and nephew in the war.
"It was a big shock, and the amount (of people) feeling shocked is countless because of what happened to their homes – it's destruction, total destruction. It's not like an earthquake or a flood, no no, what happened is a war of extermination," he said.
With a growing flow of aid into the Palestinian enclave, residents flocked into markets, with some expressing happiness at the lower prices and the presence of new food items like imported chocolates.
"The prices have gone down, the war is over and the crossing is open to more goods," said Aya Mohammad-Zaki, a displaced woman from Gaza City, who has been sheltering in Deir al-Balah in central Gaza Strip.
Billions of dollars will be needed to rebuild Gaza after the war. A U.N. damage assessment released this month showed that clearing over 50 million tonnes of rubble left in the aftermath of Israel's bombardment could take 21 years and cost up to $1.2 billion.
A U.N. report from last year, said rebuilding Gaza's shattered homes could take at least until 2040, but could drag on for many decades.
The debris is believed to be contaminated with asbestos, with some refugee camps struck during the war known to have been built with the material.
A U.N. Development Programme official said on Sunday that development in Gaza has been set back by 69 years as a result of the conflict.
