How many palestinians have been murdered by israel from 1948 to present day

1. The headline: Palestinian Authority totals and what they mean

The Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS) and statements from Palestinian official media have presented cumulative figures of about 134,000–136,000 Palestinians “killed since the Nakba until this day,” a total the bureau releases on anniversary observances and frames as “martyrs” including those killed inside and outside historic Palestine ^{[1] [2] [5]}. These PCBS totals are the most frequently cited single-number answers to the question because they aggregate more than seven decades and explicitly treat victims of multiple conflicts and episodes as part of a continuous tally ^[1].

2. Why other datasets give different answers: time span, definition, attribution

International and NGO datasets cover narrower periods or apply stricter inclusion rules: the UN OCHA casualty database documents deaths “since 2008” in the Occupied Palestinian Territory and Israel tied specifically to hostilities and occupation-related incidents, so it is not a multi-decade cumulative count from 1948 ^[3]. B’Tselem and similar rights groups maintain detailed casualty databases focused on particular phases (for example, since the second Intifada) and on rights-based attributions, which produces different totals and categorical breakdowns than national statistical agencies ^[4]. Academic compilations and historical overviews also differ because some include battlefield military deaths, some count civilians only, and some include Palestinians killed outside the territory—choices that materially change the sum ^{[6] [7]}.

3. The recent wars that dramatically raised mortality counts and reporting disputes

The 2023–2025 Gaza war produced very large and contested casualty tallies: Gaza-based authorities and some compilations reported tens of thousands of Palestinian deaths in 2023–2024 alone, figures that are reflected in PCBS updates and Gaza health ministry reports cited in aggregated summaries ^{[5] [8] [1]}. Independent press and investigative outlets have documented disputes over classification of combatants versus civilians and reported instances where numbers were later questioned or reclassified, a dynamic that affects how contemporary surges feed into cumulative totals ^[8].

4. Sources, verification gaps and political framing

Each source carries methodological limits and political contexts: PCBS provides a long-range national tally but does not publish the micro-level verification for every historical entry in the public snippets provided here ^[1]; UN OCHA confines itself to verified incidents from 2008 onward and annotates categories and limitations ^[3]; NGOs such as B’Tselem combine rights claims with casualty tracking but write from an explicit advocacy standpoint that shapes presentation and emphasis ^[4]. Where sources do not cover an assertion—such as a fully reconciled, independently audited count from 1948 to today—this reporting cannot supply it and must rely on the summary numbers the parties publish ^{[3] [1]}.

5. Bottom line: a working, qualified answer and how to read it

The most-cited comprehensive figure from Palestinian authorities is “more than 134,000” killed since 1948 (often updated into the 136,000 range by 2024 reporting), but independent international datasets either do not attempt a 1948–present cumulative total or will yield lower numbers because they restrict timeframe, geography or victim categories ^{[1] [2] [3]}. To understand the difference, researchers should compare the PCBS total against OCHA’s post‑2008 records and NGO databases (B’Tselem) while remaining attentive to contested classifications around recent large-scale hostilities and to the political framings each source carries ^{[3] [4] [8]}.