Thousands of Refugee Deaths in Gaza from May to Present, Documented by United Nations
The ongoing conflict in the Gaza Strip, triggered by a large-scale attack by Hamas and its allies in October 2023, has resulted in a severe humanitarian crisis. According to credible sources, over 1,760 Palestinians seeking aid have reportedly been killed since the end of May 2023, particularly those trying to reach food distribution points and hospitals.
Multiple eyewitnesses and hospitals have reported Israeli troops opening fire on crowds near humanitarian aid sites run by the Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, with the United Nations documenting hundreds of fatalities near such sites from late May to July 2025.
However, Israel's military denies these allegations, stating it only fires warning shots and claims it is unaware of casualties caused by its gunfire in those zones. The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation also denies that its armed contractors cause deaths, stating they use only non-lethal methods like pepper spray or warning shots to manage crowds. There is no mention of any formal independent investigation underway into these killings.
Meanwhile, humanitarian groups and the U.N. continue to document fatalities and characterize the situation as a severe humanitarian and famine crisis. As of now, the UN Human Rights Office has reported 1,373 deaths since the end of May in connection with aid deliveries in the Gaza Strip on August 1. Additionally, at least 766 people were killed along the routes of aid convoys.
The number of hostages held by Hamas in the Palestinian territory stands at 49, with only 22 estimated to be still alive by the Israeli army. The Israeli security cabinet decided a week ago to escalate its operations against Hamas, aiming to capture the city of Gaza and the refugee camps in Al-Mawasi in the center of the Gaza Strip.
The AFP news agency cannot independently verify the information regarding the deaths in the Gaza Strip due to the lack of accessibility. The UN Human Rights Office has no information about the involvement of other armed fighters in the killings, and these figures are considered realistic by the United Nations.
The war in the Gaza Strip is still ongoing, with the Israeli military stating it will check the claims of 23 deaths in Israeli attacks on Friday made by the Hamas-controlled Civil Defense. According to Hamas authorities, more than 61,700 people have been killed so far in the Gaza Strip, with the majority of these killings attributed to the Israeli army. These figures cannot be independently verified but are considered realistic by the United Nations.
The Commission has not yet adopted a proposal for a directive on the protection of workers from the risks related to exposure to ionizing radiation in the midst of the ongoing and contentious politics surrounding the war-and-conflicts in the Gaza Strip, where the severe humanitarian crisis has resulted in general-news reporting over 61,700 deaths, as stated by Hamas authorities. Despite the uncertainty surrounding these figures, the United Nations considers them realistic.
