Catastrophic Toll in Gaza: Nearly 100,000 Palestinians Killed Amid Violence and Starvation in the Gaza Genocide

Since October 7, 2023, Gaza has endured one of the most devastating and bloodiest wars in modern history, with the Palestinian death toll, comprising fatalities, missing persons, and injuries, surpassing 100,000, according to reports from the Israeli newspaper Haaretz and independent field studies.

These staggering figures, coupled with the collapse of the healthcare system, escalating famine, and a controversial international silence, render this conflict exceptional not only for its immense human cost but also for its blatant violations of international humanitarian law and the unprecedented targeting of civilians.

Unimaginable Casualties: Numbers Beyond Comprehension

The Palestinian Ministry of Health reported an official death toll of approximately 56,300 by January 2025. However, a field study led by Professor Michael Spagat, a conflict economics expert at the University of London, revealed a far grimmer reality. The study, which surveyed 2,000 households encompassing around 10,000 individuals, concluded that deaths from direct violence reached 75,200, a 40% discrepancy from official figures.

The losses extend beyond those killed in airstrikes, incorporating "excess deaths" caused by starvation, disease, the destruction of the healthcare system, and the lack of water and electricity, bringing the total death toll to 83,740 by January 2025, with projections indicating it has since exceeded 100,000.

Compounding the tragedy, 56% of the victims are women and children, a proportion unmatched in any armed conflict since World War II. This figure starkly surpasses civilian casualty rates in conflicts like Syria (20–23%), Sudan (20%), Kosovo (20%), or northern Ethiopia (9%), revealing a clear pattern of disproportionate civilian targeting.

This contradicts Israel’s claims that civilian deaths are mere "collateral damage," highlighting a gross failure to adhere to the principles of distinction and proportionality under international humanitarian law. Such actions place legal and moral responsibility on those who ordered and executed these attacks, as well as those who supported or remained silent.

Starvation as a Weapon: Famine as a Tool of Mass Killing

Israel’s suffocating blockade has transformed food into a deadly weapon, rendering bread an unattainable dream. According to international reports from the United Nations and the Red Cross, over 1.1 million Palestinians in Gaza face acute food insecurity. Children are dying from severe malnutrition and a lack of therapeutic milk, while basic food supplies are nearly nonexistent.

The deliberate use of starvation as a military pressure tactic constitutes a war crime under the Geneva Conventions, which prohibit denying civilians access to essential resources. The famine in Gaza is not a natural byproduct of war but a deliberate outcome of military and political decisions targeting the very essence of Palestinian life.

Collapsed Healthcare System: Death Beyond the Bombs

The humanitarian catastrophe has been exacerbated by the near-total collapse of Gaza’s healthcare system, with over 80% of medical facilities destroyed and 36 hospitals rendered inoperative due to bombardment. Gaza has become a place devoid of basic medical care, where children and patients die from easily treatable conditions, such as minor infections or lack of medication.

Operating rooms, lacking surgical sutures and painkillers, have turned into places of slow death rather than lifesaving sanctuaries. UN and Red Cross reports describe the situation as "catastrophic," with even basic supplies like bandages and primary medications unavailable.

A War Against Civilians: Unprecedented Figures

The civilian death toll in Gaza, approximately 4% of the sector’s 2.2 million population, marks this conflict as one of the deadliest of the century, surpassing even the wars in Syria and Sudan. According to Professor Spagat, this proportion is unmatched in its impact on civilians. The targeting of women and children at a 56% rate signals a systematic pattern of disproportionate violence, prompting human rights organizations like Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International to classify these acts as war crimes and crimes against humanity.

Official Numbers vs. Reality: A Stark Discrepancy

The Israeli military’s casualty estimates remain vague and unsupported by credible evidence. While claiming to have killed around 20,000 Hamas and other fighters, no lists or reliable sources have been provided. In contrast, independent studies, such as one published in The Lancet, confirm that the death toll may be 41% higher than official figures, particularly due to uncounted indirect deaths from starvation and disease.

A follow-up study conducted after February 2025 projected that total direct and indirect deaths could reach 186,000 if the conflict continues at its current pace, underscoring the urgent need for intervention to halt this catastrophe.

Global Silence: Complicity or Impotence?

Despite the staggering toll and documented atrocities, international silence prevails. No binding UN resolution has compelled Israel to cease its aggression, and international criminal investigations have been stalled by political protections granted to Israel by major powers in the UN Security Council.

Human rights organizations assert that this silence is not neutral but a form of complicity or cover-up for the ongoing genocide. Continued disregard for civilian suffering threatens to dismantle the global justice system and erode trust in its mechanisms.

Beyond Numbers: A Comprehensive Humanitarian Crisis

The war in Gaza is not merely a tally of horrific statistics but a multifaceted humanitarian disaster touching every aspect of life. Education has ground to a halt, with schools destroyed or converted into shelters. Clean water, electricity, and basic necessities are virtually nonexistent.

The psychological toll on survivors, especially children who have witnessed unspeakable horrors, will persist for generations. UN and international relief agency reports warn that the war’s repercussions will endure for decades, even if a ceasefire is achieved, unless immediate action is taken to halt the disaster and rebuild lives.

Behind every number is a name, a story, and a shattered family. The 100,000 victims are not mere statistics but individuals with dreams and futures stolen by brutality. The destruction of Gaza’s infrastructure, combined with deliberate starvation policies and the healthcare system’s collapse, has created a crisis that transcends direct violence.

A Call to Action: The World Must Respond

The evidence is undeniable: what is unfolding in Gaza is not a conventional armed conflict but a war disproportionately targeting civilians, with devastating consequences for an entire population. The international community must act urgently to address this catastrophe.

Necessary steps include opening humanitarian corridors, ensuring the delivery of food, medicine, and essential supplies, and applying diplomatic pressure to end the violence. Accountability for violations of international law must be pursued through impartial investigations and, where warranted, prosecutions.

Failure to act will leave a stain on the world’s collective conscience. History will judge not only the perpetrators of these atrocities but also those who stood by as spectators. The Gaza crisis demands more than verbal condemnations; it requires urgent, collective action to restore humanity to a place where it has been cruelly stripped away.