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Rabat – As Israel continues its unprecedented aggression on Palestinian civilians, Western media coverage has continued to unquestionably broadcast the occupation forces’ narrative, saying that around 1,400 civilians were allegedly killed by Hamas during its attack on October 7.
Contrary to this narrative, The Cradle has analyzed the purported claims and unveiled a different story, showing that most deaths were not civilians, and disputing some of Israel’s claims against Hamas.
Civilian deaths
Data published by Israeli newspaper Haaretz revealed that nearly half of the Israeli fatalities were actually combatants.
Of the 902 names released at that point, 462 individuals, or over 49%, were identified as soldiers and police officers. Additionally, 13 were described as members of rescue services, and the remaining 339 were categorized as civilians.
Israeli media propaganda has been portraying a large-scale civilian massacre with a particular focus on infants, children and women as the primary targets of the attack, a narrative that has also been spread by Western media.
The narrative has perpetuated the selective outrage and paved the way for Israel’s extensive military actions in the Gaza Strip, affecting the over two million civilians living there.
According to Haaretz’s data, there were no recorded deaths of children under the age of three, which challenges the Israeli narrative that Palestinian resistance fighters specifically targeted babies.
Among the 902 total casualties reported, only seven were between the ages of 4 and 7, and nine were between the ages of 10 and 17. The remaining 885 casualties appear to be adults.
Sexual violence and child killing allegations
Allegations of sexual violence during this conflict have further complicated the narrative.
“Israeli girls being raped and their bodies dragged through the street” were claims raised by Aviva Klompas, a former speechwriter for the Israeli mission to the UN.
The sole case cited as evidence of rape involved a young German-Israeli woman named Shani Louk, who was initially assumed to be dead after being filmed face down in a pickup truck.
However, her mother claimed that she was alive but had suffered a severe head wound. Hamas information indicated that Louk was receiving medical treatment in an undisclosed Gaza hospital.
The rape allegations have also gained significant traction, even being mentioned by US President Joe Biden, despite the Israeli military acknowledging a lack of evidence at that point.
Similar unsubstantiated claims, including the gruesome story of Hamas “beheading 40 babies,” made headlines in Western media and were even similarly referenced by Biden.
The allegations traced back to an Israeli reserve settler and soldier, David Ben Zion, who has a history of inciting violence against Palestinians.
However, no concrete evidence was ever presented to support the claims, and the White House later confirmed that Biden had never seen such photos.
Well treated hostages
The available evidence does not strongly support the idea that Palestinian fighters intentionally targeted unarmed Israeli civilians. Instead, the available footage suggests they primarily engaged with armed Israeli forces, resulting in the deaths of numerous occupation soldiers.
As Qassam Brigades’ Spokesman Abu Obeida indicated on October 12th, the conflict led to the imprisonment of over 1,200 Palestinians by Israeli authorities in the occupied West Bank. Reports have also emerged suggesting mistreatment, torture, and even killings of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli custody.
In contrast to the Israeli perspective, emerging evidence suggests that it is possible that Israeli military forces may have unintentionally harmed captives, targeted the wrong individuals, or mistaken Israelis for Palestinians during intense firefights.
For example, in Ashkelon on October 8, Israeli soldiers mistakenly shot and insulted a man they believed to be a Hamas fighter, only to later discover that he was an Israeli citizen. This case was one of three friendly fire incidents on the same day, resulting in the death of Israelis at the hands of their own troops.
While the treatment of hostages by the Hamas militant group has been portrayed as barbaric, 85 year-old Yocheved Liftshitz, who was released by Hamas on Tuesday, told a different story.
“They give us something to drink here and there. When they see we are nervous they calm us down. It was very frightening but no one treated us violently. Luckily nothing happened to me like what I heard in the media.” Yocheved said.
The videos put in question claims and allegations promoted by Western media as well as the Israeli government, that Hamas had mistreated the hostages. Since the Al-Aqsa Storm operation, Hamas has released four captives.
The violence has continued to escalate in the region, with Israel targeting residential buildings. The Israeli violence has killed at least 7,500 Palestinians and left over 15,000 injured.
