A man carries the body of a child killed by the Israeli army at a funeral in Gaza City. Photo: Dawoud Abu Alkas/Reuters.
The medical journal has previously reported that the death toll from Israel’s genocide could be in the hundreds of thousands
A new study by The Lancet medical journal has revealed that the death toll from Israel’s genocide in Gaza was a third higher than official figures said, with the number of “violent deaths” exceeding 75,000 in the first 16 months.
Four percent of the population had been killed by the start of last year, the report finds.
While the Gaza Health Ministry said in January 2025 that the death toll was just over 49,000, in reality it was about 35 percent higher – close to 75,200, The Lancet said. The Gaza Mortality Survey conducted by the journal does not cover Israel’s attacks after January 2025.
Over 600 Palestinians have been killed since the October 2025 ceasefire deal came into effect.
The journal also states that the number of women, children, and elderly killed by Israel in the strip was reported accurately by Gaza health authorities, which Tel Aviv accuses of lying and inflating numbers. “The combined evidence suggests that, as of 5 January, 2025, 3–4 percent of the population of the Gaza Strip had been killed violently and there have been a substantial number of nonviolent deaths caused indirectly by the conflict,” The Lancet wrote.
“This first independent population survey of mortality in the Gaza Strip shows that violent deaths have substantially exceeded official figures whereas the demographic composition of casualties aligns with Ministry of Health reporting.”
While the ministry accurately reported the casualty rates of women, children, and elderly Palestinians, severe limitations caused by the genocide and collapse of the health system resulted in numerous deaths going unreported.
The official death toll currently stands at over 72,000.
The Lancet reported in 2024 that if counting indirect deaths – including those from deteriorated health facilities, famine, and disease – then the number could range between 149,000 and 598,000 Palestinian mortalities.
The medical journal published a correspondence the following year highlighting how “three million life-years have been lost” due to Israel’s genocidal war on the Gaza Strip.
The term “life-years lost” refers to the total number of years of expected life that Palestinians who were killed would have lived had they not died prematurely.
A new Al Jazeera investigation reveals that thousands of Palestinians were “vaporized” throughout the genocide as a result of US-manufactured thermal and thermobaric weapons.
Since the US-backed agreement came into effect, Israel has refused to abide by the terms and has killed at least 611 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry.
