The figure includes people believed buried beneath rubble, those who disappeared during localised Israeli incursions or forced evacuations, and thousands believed to have been subjected to enforced disappearance in Israeli custody.
Palestinian prisoners’ rights groups said on August 30 that Israel has continued to deny information on detainees from Gaza, including their names, whereabouts, and health status, while denying them contact with families, lawyers, and rights organisations.
The rights groups also accused Israel of withholding the bodies of Palestinians from Gaza who died in detention, as well as the remains of others held in morgues and so-called “cemeteries of numbers.”
The Palestinian Justice Ministry says more than 4,700 women and children are among those missing or forcibly disappeared since October 7, 2023.
Enforced disappearance is prohibited under international law and, when widespread or systematic, can constitute a crime against humanity.
