61 percent of those killed in the war between Israel and Hamas are civilians. That’s according to a study from the Open University in Israel.
That would mean that the ongoing war in Gaza has claimed proportionately more civilian casualties than any other war in the area – and also more than any modern war.
The figures come from sociology professor Yagil Levy, who specializes in studying military conflicts.
During three previous Israeli military offensives in Gaza, in the years 2012 to 2022, the number of civilian casualties was around 40 percent. In a bombing campaign earlier this year, the figure dropped to 31 percent.
But Hamas’ acts of terror against Israel just over two months ago prompted the Israeli military’s IDF to launch a massive military offensive, which in the first three weeks caused the number of civilian casualties to rise to 61 percent, according to the estimate.
In other wars in the world during the 20th century, the average number of civilian victims was 50, says Yagil Levy.
“Signs that their network is falling apart”
More than 17,400 people have died in just over two months of war, most of them women and children, according to Gaza’s Hamas-controlled health ministry, which also includes combatants in the figures.
Yagil Levy tells Haaretz newspaper that he believes the high number of civilian deaths will radicalize the Gaza population, thereby undermining Israel’s security.
Israel’s Commander-in-Chief, Herzi Halevi, said yesterday that he believes Israel should intensify the fighting:
– Every day we see how more and more terrorists are killed, more and more terrorists are injured, and in recent days we see how terrorists give up – this is a sign that their network is falling apart, it is a sign that we have to move forward harder.