UN sharply revises stats on women, children deaths in Gaza

The UN’s Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs has quietly revised the number of women and children who were supposed to have died during Israel’s ongoing war with Hamas terrorists. The UN has reduced nearly by half the number of women and children included in its total number of fatalities. The Jerusalem Post was the first to report on the differences between current and archived data.

What was the office previously reporting? WORLD obtained an OCHA infographic from May 1 that is archived online. It shows the total casualties at 34,568, with more than 9,500 being women and more than 14,500 being children.

What is the office currently reporting? As of Monday morning, the infographic on OCHA’s website, dated May 9, reported the total number of reported deaths in Gaza as having increased by a few hundred. However, it reports the number of women and children’s deaths is dramatically lower. The May 9 OCHA graphic reports fewer than 5,000 women have died and under 8,000 children.

Does the UN provide any explanation for the revised figures? The infographic does not mention the changes. A disclaimer at the bottom explains that the casualty numbers come from the Gaza Health Ministry and Government Media Office in Gaza, as well as the Israeli authorities. The UN has admitted it is unable to verify such figures. Last month, the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry wrote in a document posted to social media that it had incomplete data in its casualty figures, according to a translation. The agency also has not distinguished between civilians and militants in its casualty figures.

The Foundation for Defense of Democracies Director of Research David Adesnik called on OCHA to clarify the changes, saying the UN has seemingly recognized a lack of evidence behind Hamas’ original claims.

Doesn’t the Israeli military take steps to avoid civilian casualties? The Israel Defense posted an online description of the steps it takes to minimize the war’s effect on civilians. The IDF says it sends text messages and phone calls to civilians living in buildings it seeks to target, urging them to evacuate.

Dig deeper: Read A.S. Ibrahim’s column in WORLD Opinions about how there can be no real peace until Hamas is destroyed.