Gaza genocide

Gaza Deaths

Data on deaths and injuries in Gaza, even when incomplete, holds significant value. This data set, which includes only official deaths in which identification could be confirmed, is a vital resource for understanding the impact and trajectory of Israel's genocide against the Palestinians in Gaza since 10.7.2023. Officials in Gaza have consistently demonstrated a commitment to the credibility of their data, implementing rigorous practices in data collection and publication. While these numbers continue to serve the essential purpose of tracing and illustrating the trends of Israel’s violence, it's critical to understand that the death toll is likely many times higher. In addition to those that have not been able to be adequately identified, thousands of Palestinians in Gaza remain under the rubble, disappeared by Israel, buried in mass graves, or simply cannot be retrieved at this time due to Israel’s blockade and the lack of sufficient fuel for heavy equipment.

Dr. Rasha Khatib, Martin McKee, and Salim Yusuf's instructive article, "Counting the dead in Gaza: difficult but essential", published in the Lancet, gives a framework for understanding the limited ability to count the dead when those carrying out data collection are also being targeted and murdered during a genocide.

The authors discuss the difficulties and importance of accurately counting deaths in Gaza during the ongoing genocidal war. As of June 19, 2024, the Palestinian Health Ministry in Gaza reported 37,396 confirmed and identified martyrs since October 2023. While Israeli politicians have contested these figures publicly, the figures are largely accepted by Israeli intelligence services, the UN, and WHO, and supported by independent analysis.

The authors emphasize the multiple factors contributing to underreporting in the official death toll since October 7. Below are some of the most important factors:

Data collection: By February 2024, Israeli forces had destroyed 35% of buildings in Gaza, making it difficult to access and record casualties. In addition, Israeli forces have continuously targeted and invaded Palestinian hospitals, the very sites of data collection for the official death toll.

Adaptation of reporting methods: The Palestinian Health Ministry now relies on media sources, first responders, and hospital data, which has forced the officials to adopt new systems to ensure accuracy.

Unidentified bodies: As of May 2024, 30% of reported deaths were unidentified, complicating accurate data collection and reporting.

Bodies still buried: An estimated 10,000 bodies may remain under rubble, preventing any possibility of confirmation and identification. There have been numerous accounts of mass graves where Palestinians were found killed, tied up, and executed. There may be more that have not been discovered.

Using historical analysis and precedent, the authors finally argue that the death rate is likely five times as high as the current official figures:

"In recent conflicts, such indirect deaths range from three to 15 times the number of direct deaths. Applying a conservative estimate of four indirect deaths per one direct death to the 37,396 deaths reported, it is not implausible to estimate that up to 186,000 or even more deaths could be attributable to the current conflict in Gaza. Using the 2022 Gaza Strip population estimate of 2,375,259, this would translate to 7.9% of the total population in the Gaza Strip. A report from Feb 7, 2024, at the time when the direct death toll was 28,000, estimated that without a ceasefire there would be between 58,260 deaths (without an epidemic or escalation) and 85,750 deaths (if both occurred) by Aug 6, 2024."

We've built this data set using the figures provided by the folks at TechforPalestine. However, the daily averages are based on our own informed calculations. We take responsibility for any errors in reporting.