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Study Confirms Credibility of Gaza Health Ministry’s Death Toll Amid Ongoing Conflict
A recent study validates the Gaza Health Ministry’s reported death toll, shedding light on the ongoing conflict’s impact. Explore the findings and their implications for understanding the humanitarian crisis in the region.
Study Validates Gaza Health Ministry’s Death Toll Amid Conflict
A recent analysis of the initial 17 days of Israel’s aerial bombardment in the Gaza Strip has concluded that the death toll reported by the Gaza Ministry of Health is credible, countering ongoing debates surrounding these figures. The study was conducted by Airwars, a British organization dedicated to assessing claims of civilian harm in conflict zones.
This new research aligns with earlier findings that indicated the Health Ministry’s casualty figures during the early stages of the war were reliable. In late October, the Health Ministry released a list containing the names of approximately 7,000 individuals who had lost their lives in the first 17 days of conflict.
During this intense period of hostilities, thousands of Israeli airstrikes and explosive events occurred. However, Airwars specifically analyzed only a subset of these incidents—350 events in total—for their study published on Wednesday. Through their rigorous investigation, they were able to independently identify around 3,000 names, the majority of which corresponded with those on the Health Ministry’s list.
Consequently, Airwars expressed confidence in the reliability of the ministry’s casualty reporting system at the onset of the war, and they are currently undertaking efforts to analyze further strikes and explosions as the situation evolves.
It is important to note that while the ministry’s figures were considered credible in the early days, more recent data has become increasingly questionable, especially following the significant degradation of Gaza’s healthcare system due to the ongoing conflict.
As the war continues to wreak havoc on the civilian population, the Gaza Ministry of Health reported on Wednesday that the total number of fatalities has now surpassed 39,000. This staggering figure encompasses both civilians and combatants, underscoring the profound humanitarian crisis unfolding in the region.