After over two years of Israel’s genocide in Gaza, senior Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) officials concurred that over 71,000 Palestinians have been killed since October 7, 2023, the first time they admitted that the number cited by the Gaza health ministry was accurate.
Previously dismissed as “unreliable” and “misleading,” senior military sources told Israeli newspapers Haaretz and the Times of Israel that while the number was correct, the IDF has not been able to break down how many were combatants and how many were civilians who died as a direct result of the fighting.
The IDF had previously said that two or three Palestinian civilians were killed for every dead militant.
IDF officials also said that the over 71,000 figure does not include residents who are missing and potentially buried under the rubble or those who died of starvation.
Following the latest Israeli media reports, a military official said the details published did not match official IDF data. “Any publication or report on this matter will be released through official and orderly channels,” the IDF official told Haaretz and the Times of Israel.
However, the death toll has been verified by the United Nations and other international agencies have also widely considered the Gaza Health Ministry numbers as reliable. The health ministry has recorded 71,667 deaths since the start of Israel’s genocide in the besieged enclave in 2023, even as some studies have said the true death toll may be even higher, up to 200,000.
The two year long conflict between Israel and Palestine began after 1,200 Israelis were killed in an attack by Hamas on October 7, 2023.
In response, the Israel military carried out heavy bombardment of Palestinian territories, including Gaza. Even after the United States brokered ceasefire, which came into effect in October 2025, over 480 Palestinians have been killed by Israel, Al Jazeera reported.
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