IDF official says 71 000 killed in Gaza war, matching Gaza Health Ministry estimate

JTA – A senior Israel Defence Forces (IDF) official told Israeli media outlets on Thursday, 29 January, that the military estimates a death toll in Gaza of approximately 71 000, the same number that the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry announced this week. 

In the past, Israeli officials have sometimes disputed Gaza Health Ministry data, accusing the ministry of inflating death tolls. Though Israeli officials haven’t officially disputed the overall Gaza war figures for some time, they frequently contested the toll in specific incidents, and some pro-Israel advocates have continued to challenge estimates of the death toll in Gaza as Hamas propaganda. 

Now, the senior official’s disclosure underscores that there is no gap in the total number of deaths estimated by both parties to the two-year war in Gaza. 

The official reportedly said the IDF was still working to determine the breakdown between combatants and civilians in the total, as well as how many died directly from military action. The Gaza Health Ministry’s toll doesn’t distinguish between militants and civilians. 

The official’s remarks on Thursday were briefed to Israeli outlets on condition of anonymity. By Thursday evening, an IDF official told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency that the reports didn’t reflect an official disclosure by the army. 

“The IDF clarifies that the details published don’t reflect official IDF data,” the IDF official said. “Any publication or report on this matter will be released through official and orderly channels.” 

Israel hasn’t published its own data on the death toll in Gaza to refute the ministry’s, but has maintained that it has killed roughly two to three civilians for every militant. 

The Gaza Health Ministry says 71 667 Gazans died between 7 October 2023, when Hamas attacked Israel from the enclave, and today, including more than 450 killed since the United States brokered ceasefire went into effect in October 2025. It also claims that at least 440 Palestinians have died of malnutrition and starvation, a figure that Israel denies. 

Human rights nongovernmental organisations and the United Nations have long said the ministry’s data is reliable. Some estimates by pro-Palestinian sources have suggested an even higher toll. 

About two million Palestinians lived in Gaza at the outset of the war. The 71 000 figure means that about 3% of Gaza’s population was killed during the war.