It has been 467 days since Israel began its war against Palestinians in Gaza. That’s more than 15 months of daily bombardments, death, injuries, displacement and starvation.

The Israeli onslaught began on October 7, 2023, after attacks on southern Israel led by the Palestinian group Hamas.

More than 1,100 people were killed in the attacks, and about 240 were taken captive. Many of the captives were either freed in a prisoner exchange in November 2023 or were killed during subsequent Israeli attacks.

Israel began a brutal onslaught with air raids after the attacks and further tightened its blockade on the enclave, which has been in place since 2007.

46,707 Palestinians killed

In the past 15 months, at least 46,707 people in Gaza have been killed, which includes about 18,000 children. The death toll means that one out of every 50 people has been killed in Gaza. Many analysts and rights groups believe the real number killed is far higher.

Despite global condemnations and pleas from international organisations and rights groups, Israel has continued a collective punishment campaign on the besieged enclave, where half of the population is under the age of 18. In doing so, Israel has wiped out multiple generations of families from the civil registry.

Advertisement

More than 100,000 people injured

At least 110,265 people have been injured in Gaza as a result of the war. That’s one in 20 people.

According to the World Health Organization, nearly a quarter of the injured, an estimated 22,500 people, have life-altering injuries that require but are not receiving rehabilitation. Severe limb injuries are the main type of injury needing rehabilitation.

According to UNRWA, the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees, every day 10 children lose one or both legs with operations and amputations conducted with little or no anaesthesia due to Israel’s blockade.

The Palestinian Ministry of Health stated that by the end of 2024 there had been at least 4,500 amputations.

In addition to the confirmed casualties, thousands of people are feared buried under the rubble. With few tools to remove the rubble and rescue those trapped beneath concrete, volunteers and Palestinian Civil Defence workers rely on their bare hands. There is no way to know how many people have perished under the rubble.

An estimated 85,000 tonnes of explosives have been dropped on Gaza, according to the Environmental Quality Authority of Palestine. Experts predicted it could take more than a decade to clear the debris left by the bombing, which totals more than 42 million tonnes, according to the UN Development Programme. On top of the work of clearing the rubble is the risk of dealing with unexploded bombs.

Gaza is starving

Under the Rome Statute, a treaty that established the International Criminal Court, intentionally starving a population is a war crime when committed during an armed conflict.

Advertisement

An investigation by Al Jazeera’s Fault Lines found that Israel has systematically denied aid and water to starving people in Gaza.

In January, the United Nations humanitarian agency stated that efforts to supply aid in Gaza are at a “breaking point”.

Israel restricts aid deliveries and has carried out attacks on aid workers, creating a starving people heavily reliant on external help.

At least eight babies have also died of hypothermia as Palestinians in Gaza struggle to survive in shelters inadequate for winter weather.

Nearly 1.9 million people in Gaza are internally displaced, of which nearly 80 percent are living in makeshift shelters without adequate clothing or protection from the cold.

UN agencies estimated that nearly half a million are in flood-prone areas. Authorities in Gaza said about 110,000 of the 135,000 tents being used as shelters in the Gaza Strip are worn out and not fit for use.