Israel's military intelligence database reveals that the publicly reported number of Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad fighters killed in Gaza is significantly inflated. While the database shows around 8,900 militants killed or probably killed, official figures have been double that. Intelligence sources confirm the higher numbers are inaccurate, suggesting a focus on this metric as a measure of success rather than strategic objectives. This misleading reporting has been used to bolster public support, but experts criticize the strategy and its devastating civilian toll, estimating five civilians killed for every militant. The high civilian death toll and inaccurate militant figures have led to criticism even from within Israel.

Prepared by Rachel Morgan and reviewed by editorial team.