A report from the United Nations Human Rights Commission indicated that nearly 70% of the identified casualties in the Gaza war during the first six months of the conflict were women and children. The commission noted that this figure was verified using three reliable sources, such as neighbors, family members, and local non-governmental organizations, along with hospital records or United Nations staff. These numbers indicate that the victims of the conflict include large numbers of civilians, including young age groups.

The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk confirmed that the findings of the report suggest a “systematic violation of the fundamental principles of international humanitarian law,” including disproportionate and discriminatory treatment of civilians in Gaza. He emphasized the importance of holding perpetrators of these violations accountable through reliable and independent judicial mechanisms, alongside the necessity of gathering and documenting evidence related to these violations for future accountability.

In turn, the Israeli diplomatic mission to the United Nations rejected the report, accusing the commission of ignoring the realities on the ground, specifically the role of Hamas in using civilians as human shields, which the movement denies. Israel considered its military operations in Gaza a reaction to the attack launched by Hamas on October 7, 2023, which resulted in the death of around 1,200 Israelis and the abduction of more than 250 hostages.

The UN report stated that the verified toll includes 8,119 individuals killed so far, knowing that these figures are considerably lower than the toll provided by Palestinian authorities, which exceeds 43,000 dead. However, the United Nations affirmed that these verified figures may approach the numbers provided by the Palestinian authorities once the documentation process is completed.

The report also revealed that children under the age of 18 make up about 44% of the total casualties, with the highest percentage among victims aged 5 to 9 years, followed by age groups between 10 and 14 years, and then children between two and four years old. The report indicated that this distribution reflects a failure to take necessary preventive measures to avoid civilian casualties. Data also showed that 88% of attacks resulted in the deaths of five or more individuals in the same attack, indicating the use of weapons that affect wide areas.

Despite these large numbers, the report mentioned that some casualties may have resulted from shells fired randomly by Palestinian armed groups, complicating the overall picture of the conflict.