Financial Times: Scale of Northern Gaza destruction equivalent to bombing of German cities in WWII

[muriel_volestrangler]

103. I don' know where "a third" came from, but it looks wildly inaccuarate. 8% would seem closer

See the breakdown by age and sex in the first 3 weeks:



https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/how-many-palestinians-have-died-gaza-war-how-will-counting-continue-2023-12-06/

If you look at the excess of male deaths in the "fighting age", it adds up to perhaps 500; we know that the deaths in the 0-4 and 5-9 groups, of both sexes, are each 11.5%, and that's about 750 people; so 500 is 11.5*500/750=7.7% - say 8%.

So it's not "2 civilians killed for each combatant"; it is, if you assume that the excess is due solely to being combatants (there are other possibilities - as The Lancet said "There was a distinct peak among men aged 30–34 years, possibly reflecting combatant or civilian exposures (e.g., first responders at bomb sites, journalists, and people going out to seek water and food for their families)" ), more like "12 civilians for each combatant".