Israel is making historic strides in reducing civilian casualties in Gaza, claims Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Despite widespread international criticism, Netanyahu emphasizes that Israel's efforts in minimizing non-combatant deaths during urban warfare are unparalleled. The Prime Minister's assertion has been backed by professional military scholars and academics.
Netanyahu, in a recent interview with US political analyst Dan Senor, detailed the measures Israel has taken to safeguard civilians. "Our military operations are preceded by leaflets, millions of text messages, and direct phone calls. We sacrifice the element of surprise to ensure civilians can move to safety," he explained. This commitment to minimizing civilian harm is unmatched globally.
PM Netanyahu says that Israel has killed 14,000 terrorists in Gaza and since they hide behind civilians, the estimate is that 16,000 civilians have been killed.
— Aviva Klompas (@AvivaKlompas) May 11, 2024
That's a combatant to civilian ratio of 1 to 1.4
In the 2016-2017 Battle of Mosul - the biggest urban battles since… pic.twitter.com/S72OhBpYff
Contrary to the pervasive narrative, the Israeli government reports that a significant portion of the Gaza fatalities are Hamas combatants, with estimates suggesting nearly half of the total casualties. This ratio of civilian to combatant deaths is extraordinarily low for any urban conflict, setting what could be considered a "new gold standard" for military engagement in densely populated areas.
This reassessment of civilian casualties is now supported by unexpected sources, including the United Nations, which admitted to mistakenly inflating the numbers of non-combatant deaths based on unreliable data from Hamas. The UN's deputy spokesman, Farhan Haq, confirmed the overestimation, attributing the error to the chaos of conflict.
Colonel John Spencer, a West Point expert in urban warfare, corroborated this view in a Newsweek article, praising the IDF's strategic operations. Yet, he noted the global community's failure to recognize these efforts, instead continuing to condemn Israel. Spencer, who chairs the Urban Warfare Studies department at West Point's Modern War Institute, and serves as Co-director of the Urban Warfare Project, and is host of the Urban Warfare Project Podcast, at West Point spoke to the Judean on a Twitter Space last week and confirmed that Israel's efforts have resulted in the lowest civilian to combatant death rate than any modern, and most likely ancient conflict. Based on Israel's and Hamas' numbers, "The IDFs 1 to 1.5 combatant to civilian ratio, or thereabout, is better than any modern, and probably older battle in urban warfare with even remotely similar context."
"Israel has not created a gold standard in civilian harm mitigation in war. That implies there is a standard in civilian casualties in war that is acceptable or not acceptable; that zero civilian deaths in war is remotely possible and should be the goal; that there is a set…
— John Spencer (@SpencerGuard) April 1, 2024
Writing in a LinkedIn post, Spencer expanded on this statement: "The IDF estimates it has killed about 13,000 Hamas operatives. That would make it a 1 to 1.5 or 1.6 ratio. But even the (Hamas-Run) Gaza Health Ministry recently announced they could not verify over 11,000 of their reported 34,000 deaths. So, combined with historical Hamas exaggerations, the combatant to civilian death ratio is more likely 1 to 1 which would be historically low for high intensity urban warfare."
Spencer's post continues, highlighting other conflicts that puts Israel's numbers into perspective: "In the 2016-2017 Battle of Mosul, the biggest urban battle since WWII, the U.S. led Iraqi Security Force killed 10,000 civilians to destroy 4,000 ISIS in the city. That is a 1 to 2.5 combatant to civilian death ratio. In the 1945 Battle of Manila (which did have some variables similar to Gaza like high number of defenders, tunnels, and hostages), the American military killed 100,000 civilians to destroy 17,000 Japanese defenders, that is a 1 to 6 ratio."
Unprecedented @IDF measures to reduce civilian casualties yields remarkably low civilian:combatant death ratio. pic.twitter.com/gya4oFCBkF
— Rɪᴄʜᴀʀᴅ Kᴇᴍᴘ ⋁ (@COLRICHARDKEMP) April 24, 2024
Amidst the echoes of international disapproval, Israel remains steadfast in its stance that the ongoing conflict is a war of necessity, ignited by threats to its sovereignty and safety. The Jewish state asserts that its military actions are aimed at disabling hostile forces, not at the Palestinian population, despite widespread opposition from the latter.
The narrative that Israel is engaging in genocide is fiercely contested by observers like British commentator Douglas Murray, who argues that the death toll in Gaza, though tragic, is not extraordinary by regional or global standards. Israel maintains that its conduct in the conflict is a testament to its commitment to humane warfare practices, even under severe provocation.
THE MOST MORAL ARMY IN THE WORLD
— Israel Institute of NZ (@IsraelInstNZ) May 14, 2024
Watch as Barrister Natasha Hausdorff, an expert in intl law, tells a UK Parliament committee that the ratio of one civilian killed per combatant killed - the ratio the Israeli military has kept to during the current war in Gaza - is unprecedented. pic.twitter.com/Q1M6NmhALn
Despite these efforts, Israel faces significant animosity on the global stage, a sentiment Netanyahu attributes to deep-seated biases against the Jewish people and their state.
