Fact check: How many Gazan people have been killed in the past two years?

1. Numbers on the Ground: Multiple Tallies Point to Tens of Thousands Lost

Reports from regional and international outlets converge on tens of thousands of Palestinian deaths in Gaza over the last two years, with several recent figures clustered around 67,000. Al Jazeera’s October 7, 2025 piece states at least 67,000 killed and over 169,000 injured, noting thousands may still be uncounted under rubble ^[1]. Reuters similarly cites a Palestinian Health Ministry breakdown giving 67,173 deaths, including 20,179 children, while the Associated Press earlier reported the toll had passed 64,000 ^{[4] [2]}. These numbers reflect a sustained consensus that the casualty scale is enormous, even if precise totals vary.

2. Who Counts as a Victim? Methodology Disputes Drive Divergence

The principal source of divergence among these tallies stems from different methodologies and definitions, particularly whether fatalities are attributed to civilians, combatants or remain unspecified. The Palestinian Health Ministry’s figures—cited by Reuters—do not distinguish between civilians and Hamas fighters, which inflates clarity but reduces specificity, according to reporting ^[4]. Independent trackers like ACLED and reporting by The Guardian emphasize high civilian proportions in more specific timeframes, noting 15 of every 16 Palestinians killed in a recent period were civilians ^[5]. This distinction drives disputes over both the humanitarian and political reading of the totals.

3. Age and Gender: Children and Women Make Up a Large Share

Multiple reports indicate that women and children account for roughly half or more of reported deaths, with children representing a particularly large share. Al Jazeera and CBC note that nearly a third of the dead were under 18 and that over 20,000 children are among the fatalities ^[1]. Reuters’ breakdown places children at 20,179, about 30% of the total ^[4]. The Associated Press also emphasizes that women and children make up around half of the dead, which humanizes the casualty figures but also raises methodological questions about age verification under disrupted civil registration systems ^[2].

4. Why Counts May Be Underestimates: Rubble, Missing Persons and Broken Systems

Reporters and officials repeatedly warn the published totals are likely undercounts due to bodies under rubble, missing persons, and the collapse of health and civil registry systems. Al Jazeera explicitly notes thousands may be unrecorded beneath rubble and that the true number is likely higher ^[1]. Reuters and the Associated Press similarly stress that the disintegration of Gaza’s healthcare and administrative infrastructure hinders comprehensive counting and that official tallies from the Gaza Health Ministry are often treated as the best available but not definitive measure ^{[4] [2]}. These operational limits constrain independent verification.

5. Short-term Surges vs. Cumulative Totals: Timing Matters

Some reporting focuses on recent surges within the two-year period, producing different snapshot figures that contribute to apparent discrepancies. The Guardian, citing ACLED, highlights spikes after a ceasefire breakdown in March, reporting over 16,000 killed since that cessation, and that civilians dominated the casualty profile in that period ^[5]. Longer cumulative tallies across the full two-year span produce the larger 64,000–67,000-range figures seen in other outlets ^{[1] [4]}. Comparing snapshot versus cumulative counts explains much of the numeric variation among sources.

6. Source Reliability and Disputed Claims: Who Is Trusted and Why

International and local outlets differ in how they treat Gaza Health Ministry figures: U.N. agencies and many independent experts often rely on those numbers as best available wartime estimates, while some governments and analysts question their categorization and completeness ^[2]. Reuters notes that the Gaza ministry’s figures do not separate combatants and civilians, prompting caution among analysts ^[4]. ACLED and independent trackers provide alternative breakdowns that emphasize civilian impacts but may use different collection methods, illustrating why no single figure is universally accepted ^[5].

7. What Is Omitted: Political Contexts and Potential Agendas

Reports sometimes omit or underplay the political contexts and incentives shaping reported figures: local authorities and advocacy outlets may emphasize civilian casualties to galvanize international response, while adversaries may dispute counts to contest culpability. Al Jazeera and CBC present high-end tallies and humanitarian framing, which supports urgent policy calls ^{[1] [3]}. Reuters and AP stress methodological caveats, reflecting a cautionary editorial stance that foregrounds verification limits ^{[4] [2]}. Recognizing these agendas helps interpret divergence between tallies.

8. Bottom Line: A Range, Not a Single Number, with Serious Human Consequences

Converging evidence from the examined reports supports a two-year Gaza death toll in the mid-60,000s, with credible estimates ranging from about 64,000 to 67,000+, substantial proportions of whom are women and children, and likely undercounts due to operational constraints ^{[1] [2] [4]}. Snapshot surges and differing classification rules explain much variance, while independent trackers emphasize the predominance of civilian victims in specific episodes ^[5]. These figures represent a major humanitarian catastrophe regardless of precise decimal differences, but methodological transparency remains essential for accountability.