This is the number of Palestinians that have been killed
since 2000, a figure that demonstrates the greatly inhuman amount of
deliberation in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Data that has been recorded
and verified by the Israeli human rights organization, B Tselem, records a high
disparity with Palestinians making up the considerably high number of victims
over a course of the past 20 years of conflict.
Besides, according to the database of Bselem, over 90,000
Palestinians have been killed since 2000, which is a significantly lower number
of Israeli people killed. This article does not only reveal the devastating
impact on Palestinian lives but also the fact that there is no sustainable
peace in the region.
Historical Context of the Israeli-Palestinian Death Toll
The figures since the beginning of the millennium in the
Israeli-Palestinian toll of the dead are very specific not only in relation to
the figures since 1948, but also in the context of increased violence. The
second intifada (2000-2005) turned out to be among the deadliest on both sides
and more so to Palestinians. Despite the major transformations in form of
policy whereby Israel had vacated Gaza by the year 2005, Palestinians remained
disproportionately high in terms of the number of those killed.
The Second Intifada and Its Aftermath (2000–2005)
The Second Intifada came to an end after thousands of people
lost their lives through clashes, suicide bombings, targeted assasination and
the military activities. The loss of Israelis (both the civilian and military)
is enormous, but the loss of Palestinian is even worse since death could be
multiple times more. It is also the time that then determined the resultant imbalances
due to long term casualties that took place.
Changes After 2005: Separation Barriers, Gaza Withdrawal, and New Patterns
After Israel withdrew to Gaza and increased the building of
separation walls in the West Bank, the rate of Israeli live deaths dramatically
reduced. The level of death among Palestinians was however high and at times
rose during military intensifications. For Palestinians, the war went down to
more frequent and violent outbreaks that ended with hundreds of Palestinians
getting killed in several weeks.
Civilian Impact and Humanitarian Dimensions
The civilian deaths are characteristic of this age.
According to the statistics of the United Nations, in almost all the major
conflicts since the year 2005, most of the Palestinian casualties have been
civilians, with very high figures of children among the civilians killed. The
Palestinian civilian casualties point to the horrible aspects of the war in
human rights terms in terms of human death toll, upheavals and the destruction
of property.
Recent Trends: 2022, 2023, and the Post–October 7 Period
Palestinian death toll in 2022 and Palestinian death toll in
2023 were already the highest in years even prior to the worsening since
October 7, 2023. Casualties figures have skyrocketed since that date with
thousands of people killed in a span of weeks. The extent of casualties has led
to the international discussion of proportionality, humanitarian law and dire
necessity of a lasting ceasefire.
The Strategic Lens: “Cutting the Grass”
The actions of Israel in Gaza have regularly been termed by
analysts as the policy of cutting the grass, or accepting low-level hostilities
but after a lapse period sending in a military campaign to destroy the strength
of militants. It might minimize the short-term losses of Israeli lives, but
this pattern will leave more and more cycles of violence that will increase the
overall number of the Palestinian casualties since 2000, while leaving the
conflict even farther away from its resolution.
Humanitarian Efforts Amid Ongoing Violence
With increasing continuous casualties, humanitarian aid has
turned out to be a
life-saving policy. States such as Jordan, Egypt and Indonesia have been
organizing relief activities and recently, news came about Indonesia
participating in airdropping food, medicine and blanket supplies to Gaza. This
shows how the world has realised the magnitude of the crisis- and the fact that
relief comes sometimes through a gun barrel, it is thus necessary yet risky.
The figures since 2000 help understand one thing, it
is that until there is a radical shift in the political state of will, the
numbers that will count the humanitarian damages will only increase. It is on
the basis of historical precedence that it is not a matter of “if” but “when”
the next large-scale death is likely to ensue unless an encompassing peace
process happens. But each statistic means a human life- and it is a conclusion
that the cost of doing nothing is not only quantifiable in grand totals but in
families and neighborhoods devastated and lost futures.