Israel revises Oct 7 Hamas attack death toll to about 1,200

TEL AVIV: Israel announced on Friday that it has revised the death toll from the October 7 Hamas attack on Israeli communities and military bases in southern Israel. The revised figure, down from around 1,400 to roughly 1,200 people, was provided by Foreign Ministry spokesman Lior Haiat, The Times of Israel reported.

The revision comes as Israel continues its assiduous efforts to identify all victims, five weeks after the tragic events unfolded.

Haiat did not delve into the details regarding the reason for the revised figures. However, beyond the victims, Israel has reported that around 1,500 terrorists are believed to have been killed by security forces during the attack and the subsequent Israeli response, leading to thousands of corpses that authorities are working to process.

Over the past month, authorities have persistently worked to identify the victims of Hamas's assault in southern Israel, where thousands of terrorists breached the border fence, attacking and killing families in their homes and on the streets, as well as individuals at a rave. Some victims suffered torture, rape, burning, and mutilation, with many of these acts recorded by the perpetrators. The attackers also killed hundreds of soldiers stationed near the border, as reported by The Times of Israel.

The death toll is expected to continue fluctuating. Some of the over 240 people abducted to the Strip may not be alive, though there are no official estimates. Additionally, as time has passed, reports have surfaced about individuals initially thought kidnapped but later confirmed, through forensic and other evidence, to have died.

This week, the Israel Antiquities Authority reported that archaeologists involved in the victim identification efforts discovered the remains of at least 10 people in houses burned during the brutal onslaught.

Most of the identification work has occurred at the Military Rabbinate's main base in Ramle, where the bodies of the victims are being slowly and painstakingly processed and identified through various technological means.

The most recent death toll from the military indicates that 318 service members were killed during the attack itself (with an additional 37 killed since the IDF launched its ground offensive in Gaza), and police cite another 59 dead. These figures encompass armed fighters who confronted the terrorists directly, as well as unarmed service members in non-combat roles who were killed inside their bases, sometimes in their beds, according to The Times of Israel.

This would leave the civilian death toll at around 800, according to current estimates.

In response to the attack, Israel declared war against Gaza Strip terror organisations and initiated an unprecedented air and ground campaign in the Strip with the aim of eliminating Hamas. The Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza claims that over 11,000 people have been killed in Gaza, without distinguishing between civilians and combatants. These figures cannot be independently verified and are believed to include those mistakenly killed by terror operatives amid the fighting.

Israel asserts that it makes every effort to avoid harming civilians but contends that it is unavoidable as it confronts a terror organisation entrenched within the civilian population, conducting operations and attacks from within hospitals, residential areas, and other civilian cover, The Times of Israel reported.