Scene of widespread destruction in Jabalia refugee camp in northern Gaza, result of the Zionist entity's genocidal aggression of 471 days. Photo: Quds News Network.
The Gaza Government Media Office has revealed that the death toll from the Zionist aggression against Gaza has reached 61,709 after 471 days of war.
The casualties from the Zionist entity’s war of extermination on Gaza, which began following the Al-Aqsa Flood Operation on October 7, 2023, are still being tallied. Civil Defense teams and residents continue to recover bodies of the missing in the aftermath of the recent ceasefire.
According to the report released on Monday, February 3, out of the 61,709 martyred Palestinians, 47,487 were received at hospitals, while at least 14,222 people remain missing, buried under the rubble or on the roads. In addition, 111,588 people were wounded in the genocidal assault.
The report also highlighted that some 2 million people were displaced by the war, a significant number of whom were displaced 25 times or more, and were forced to live more than a year in dire conditions.
Moreover, some “6,000 Palestinians were kidnapped by the occupation forces from Gaza,” and are being subjected to “heinous forms of abuse and torture” in Israeli prisons. It is feared that “dozens of them have been martyred under such torture.”
“This means that 8% of the population of Gaza were direct victims of the genocidal war, which is unprecedented in the most heinous wars and the most horrific massacres committed throughout history,” the report continued.
The report documented 9,268 massacres against families, leading to the complete obliteration of 2,092 families, while for another 4,889 families, only one member survived.
The government of Gaza accused the Zionist entity of specifically targeting children and women, “as 17,881 children were among the martyrs, including 214 infants who were born and killed during the aggression, and more than 38,000 children became orphaned, including 17,000 children who lost both parents, while the occupation killed 12,316 women.”
The entity also targeted Gaza’s civilian officials, killing 1,155 medical personnel, 194 civil defense personnel, 736 aid workers, 206 journalists and media workers, and more than 3,500 government officials, thus rendering a post-war recovery difficult.
Economic losses suffered by Gaza
The report highlighted the economic costs of the war, stating that “the genocide, ethnic cleansing, and crimes against humanity committed by the occupation army under direct instructions from its political leadership and with the support and supervision of the former US Biden administration have caused direct damage and losses exceeding $50 billion in various sectors,” while noting that these estimates are preliminary.
Among the most significant economic losses figures the targeted destruction of the Gazan healthcare sector by the occupation assault, exhibiting the Zionist entity’s genocidal intent. “The occupation has destroyed, burned, and vandalized 34 hospitals, most notably the Al-Shifa Medical Complex, depriving all residents of the Gaza Strip from receiving the minimum levels of healthcare, in addition to 80 health centers, 212 health institutions, and 191 ambulances,” the report noted. According to preliminary estimates, the damages exceed $3 billion, and the healthcare sector would need years to reach a semblance of normal functioning.
The education sector has been similarly impacted, with damage to 1,661 educational facilities, of which 927 schools, universities, kindergartens, and educational centers were completely destroyed. Moreover, the occupation forces killed more than 12,800 students and some 800 teachers and staff, while 785,000 students belonging to various educational levels were deprived of a whole school year. The economic losses suffered by the sector exceed $2 billion.
The housing sector also suffered significant damages, with 450,000 housing units damaged to various degress, including 170,000 housing units that were completely destroyed and 80,000 severely damaged, and estimated losses exceeding $25 billion. Images and videos circulating on media and social media show glimpses of the extensive damage sustained by buildings all over the Gaza Strip, where 92% homes have reportedly been destroyed, leaving 1.9 million people homeless.
Furthermore, the report referred to the losses sustained by the government sector, with complete destruction of 216 offices and facilities and severe damage to 60 others, and an estimated loss amounting to $1 billion.
Special for Orinoco Tribune by Saheli Chowdhury
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Saheli Chowdhury
Saheli Chowdhury is from West Bengal, India, studying physics for a profession, but with a passion for writing. She is interested in history and popular movements around the world, especially in the Global South. She is a co-editor and contributor for Orinoco Tribune.
