BBC Verify examines the evidence on combatant deaths, as concern grows about the scale of civilian killing.

The toll of at least 30,035 killed, from Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry, has previously been described as trustworthy by the World Health Organization’s (WHO) regional emergency director Richard Brennan.

The WHO says the ministry has “good capacity in data collection” and its previous reporting has been credible and “well developed”.

But its overall tally of those killed does not distinguish between civilians and combatants.

The Gaza authorities’ last demographic breakdown from 29 February indicated more than 70% of those killed had been women and children.

  • jordanlund@lemmy.worldMEnglish
    7·
    9 months ago

    Hamas had 10,000 fighters? 🤔

    https://www.itv.com/news/2023-10-11/how-do-the-israeli-military-and-hamas-compare-in-size-and-strength

    "According to the International Institute for Strategic Studies’ (IISS) Military Balance 2023, Israel has 169,500 active military personnel in the army, navy, and paramilitary.

    Crucially, a further 465,000 constitutes its reserve forces."

    vs.

    “In 2021, The Times of Israel quoted an unnamed senior Israeli commander as saying Hamas had an army of 30,000 men.”

    • Arete@lemmy.worldEnglish
      12·
      9 months ago

      I believe they would, because Hamas is the one putting out these numbers and they have every incentive to do this as a propaganda win.

      Teenage soldiers are a particularly tragic part of this war, being both victims and legitimate targets. Hamas has used child soldiers extensively in the past, and given that the average age in Gaza is about 17, we would expect a large fraction of Hamas soldiers to be teenagers. Further, they would represent the lowest ranking members who would be put in the most danger.

      Under IHL, if Israel captures a child soldier they are required to separate them from other POWs and give them counseling and treatment. As a practical matter though, it may be difficult to verify that someone with no ID is 17. It will be interesting to see to what extent they complied with this in a few years.

      • filister@lemmy.worldEnglish
        4·
        9 months ago

        Hmmmm, killing 30k in 4 months, destroying half of all homes in Gaza, displacing 75-80% of the population, destroying all the hospitals and a large chunk of the civilian infrastructure and causing a humanitarian catastrophe sounds to me like a textbook example of how you radicalize the entire population in Gaza.

        Do you think you will stay indifferent if you were on the other side of the fence? I don’t think so. And then act surprised when people are radicalized and blame outside forces for this radicalization.

        If there weren’t a siege in Gaza, Hamas wouldn’t exist. How many peaceful and prosperous nations do you know with terrorist organizations? Exactly none, because terrorism is flourishing from the hardships of people. And it is a bit naïve to think that the current events would lead to a long lasting peace.