Friday, January 30, 2026-In a marked shift, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has acknowledged that roughly 70,000–71,000 people have been killed in the Gaza Strip during the two‑plus‑year war, aligning with figures long published by the Hamas‑run Gaza Health Ministry.
For years, Israeli officials publicly challenged casualty estimates from the ministry, but a senior IDF official told reporters this week that the overall death tally is largely accurate, even as the breakdown between combatants and civilians remains under analysis. This admission comes as the war’s humanitarian toll continues to shape global debate over its conduct and consequences.
Despite the agreement on the overall number, major uncertainties persist. The Gaza Health Ministry’s figures do not distinguish between fighters and civilians, and Israeli military sources say they are still working through data to determine how many of the dead were combatants versus non‑combatants.
International bodies like the United Nations and human rights groups have long treated the ministry’s data as broadly reliable, but different analyses suggest widely varying civilian‑to‑combatant ratios, from relatively high civilian proportions to significantly lower estimates — underscoring the challenges of accurate casualty accounting in protracted urban warfare.
The lack of clarity on who exactly comprises the toll has intensified scrutiny of both sides’ narratives, with critics and advocates deploying figures politically amid accusations of inflated counts, misrepresentation, and propaganda.
Israel also disputes claims that many Gazans died from conflict‑linked starvation or disease, asserting that such figures are manipulated or include those with serious pre‑existing conditions. As the IDF continues its internal review and global organizations push for transparent, independent casualty verification, the human cost of the Gaza war remains a central, unresolved issue for policymakers and the public alike.
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