WHO stands firm on Gaza death toll data despite Israeli criticism; Over 35,000 dead; 60% women and children
Israel releases evacuation orders for people in more areas of Gaza's Rafah
After Israel questioned a shift in the numbers, the World Health Organisation affirmed complete confidence in the death toll data released by the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry on Tuesday, claiming they were actually getting closer to establishing the extent of deaths.
About 25,000 of the approximately 35,000 fatalities that have occurred since October 7 have been properly identified, with over half of them being women and children, according to an update provided by Gaza's health ministry last week.
Israeli officials accused the Palestinian authorities of being inaccurate when they had earlier stated that women and children made up over 70% of those killed. According to the source, UN authorities have republished the Palestinian death toll, which has recently gone up to 35,000.
When asked about the toll, WHO spokesperson Christian Lindmeier responded at a Geneva news briefing, "Nothing wrong with the data, the overall data (more than 35,000) are still the same."
"The fact we now have 25,000 identified people is a step forward," he stated.
Although many dead buried beneath debris were likely to be recognised as women or children, he stated that about 60% of casualties were women and children based on his own extrapolation of the most recent Palestinian data.
He continued by saying it was "normal" for death figures to fluctuate during battles, citing Israel's revision of its own dead toll from the Hamas strikes on October 7 to 1,200 following checks.
"We're basically talking about 35,000 people who are dead, and really every life matters, doesn't it? And we know that many and many of those are women and children and there are 1,000s missing under the rubble," Liz Throssel, spokesperson for the UN human rights office, said at the same briefing
Nearly 450,000 Palestinians have been forced to leave Rafah since Israel started issuing evacuation orders for the south of Gaza city eight days ago, according to information released on Tuesday by the UN agency for Palestinian refugees.
UNRWA stated on X, previously Twitter, "UNRWA estimates that nearly 450,000 people have been forcibly displaced from Rafah since May 6," without mentioning the location of their escape.
(With inputs from agencies)
