Israel Finally Admitted Genocide of 70,000 Palestinians

TEHRAN (Defapress) - After two years of denial, the Zionist regime finally accepted the 70,000 deaths previously announced by the Gaza Health Ministry and described it as accurate.

Israel’s change of position in accepting the official figures came at a time when the regime had been denying these statistics for more than two years, describing them as “Hamas propaganda.”

In this regard, a senior security official told Israeli reporters in a confidential meeting that since October 2023, not including missing persons, about 70,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli attacks.

Gaza health authorities have announced that the number of people killed in Israeli attacks has exceeded 71,660, and at least 10,000 others are buried under the rubble of bombed buildings.

The sudden shift in stance has raised broader questions about the nature of the Israeli military within Israel’s sick and extremist society.

“What other accusations could be true? The Israeli people should ask themselves what this belated admission tells them about the credibility of the army and the state,” the Israeli newspaper Haaretz wrote after the meeting.

The issue is likely to heighten scrutiny of civilian casualties in Gaza. The Israeli military has previously claimed to have killed 22,000 soldiers in Gaza. According to that claim, more than two-thirds of the 70,000 killed were civilians.

That figure is significantly lower than the 83 percent civilian figure listed in a confidential Israeli military database, but much higher than the 50 percent figure previously announced by Benjamin Netanyahu.

Israel has been ignoring the process of accurately recording casualties for the past two years by attacking the credibility of the Gaza Health Ministry. In previous Gaza wars, the final figures confirmed by Israel and bodies such as the United Nations have been consistent with Palestinian figures.

In a report focusing on diplomatic moves between the United States, Qatar, and Israel, the Yedioth Aharonot newspaper quoted a senior security official as saying: “We estimate that around 70,000 Palestinians have been killed in this war, not including the missing.”

The Israeli military also announced that it would reopen the key Rafah crossing between Gaza and Egypt for the first time since May 2024 on Sunday.

According to an IOF spokesman, Palestinians who have left Gaza can now apply to return for the first time since the war began. The European Union will monitor the crossing, but Israel will maintain full control over people entering and leaving.

The opening of Rafah has been presented as a key step towards advancing Donald Trump’s ceasefire plan and entering its second phase. The crossing will be open only to pedestrians and therefore will not address the severe shortages of food, shelter, medicine, and other essential humanitarian data-x-items in Gaza.