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

The United States has backed Israel since the unprecedented Hamas attack in October that resulted in the deaths of around 1,160 people.

Israel responded to the attack with a relentless assault on Gaza that the coastal territory's health ministry said has left more than 30,000 people dead.

The number provided by Austin is within the same range, and come as Washington pushes for a ceasefire and a reduction in civilian casualties in Gaza.