Gaza (Quds News Network)- The true death toll in Gaza may be far higher than what officials have reported, according to a new study by The Economist. Since the genocide began in October 2023, experts have struggled to count the dead. But recent research shows the real number of deaths could be between 77,000 and 109,000—far more than the official count.
The Ministry of Health in Gaza provides detailed daily updates. These lists are based on hospital records and online death reports. But many hospitals have been destroyed, and many people killed by Israel remain under the rubble in areas rescue teams can’t reach or are not sent to hospitals.
Researchers analyzed three separate lists of the dead. Two came from the health ministry. A third was compiled from social media obituaries. All three included names, ages, and sometimes ID numbers. The overlap between the lists was very small.
Experts say that small overlap suggests the official count is far too low. The study, published in The Lancet, estimates that the real death toll could be 46–107% higher than reported. Based on current numbers, that means between 4% and 5% of Gaza’s pre-war population may have died.
The latest figures by the Ministry of Health stated that Israel has killed 52,787 Palestinians in Gaza, stressing that it could not reach or register many victims, who are either under the rubble or in areas that Israel’s military continues to target.
Meanwhile, Israel describes all those killed in Gaza as “terrorists” even as most of them are women and children.
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