The terrible price of peace

Harrowing numbers behind the death and destruction after 15 months of conflict. By Alexander Butler and Tom Watling

- ALEXANDER BUTLER TOM WATLING

After 15 gruelling months, a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas has been struck, finally bringing to an end the war in Gaza.

Since the Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu launched a devastating bombing and ground campaign in Gaza following the attack on 7 October 2023, more than 46,788 Palestinians have been killed, with one in four of them children, according to latest figures from the Health Ministry in the Hamas-run strip. A further 110,453 people have been injured, the ministry has said.

Around 1.9 million people, accounting for 90 per cent of the population, have been forcibly displaced several times and are now living in refugee camps while facing a food crisis.

At least 50 per cent of hospitals across Gaza are only “partially functional”, according to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

Up to 12,000 patients are currently in need of medical evacuation, as many of those suffering extensive burns and amputated limbs face limited access to lifesaving medical care, OCHA figures show.

During a brief pause in the war last November, Hamas released around 100 hostages in exchange for 240 Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails, but the war restarted after a week-long truce.

The Israeli military has claimed to have hit over 40,000 targets in Gaza, saying that Hamas is using the population of Gaza as human shields.

More than 8,200 rockets have been launched at Israel from inside the strip since that date, with another 12,000 fired from Lebanon, Israel said.