Gaza: Between 2,500 and 3,000 people are estimated to have been subjected to enforced disappearance in the Gaza Strip during Israel's war, a Palestinian rights group said Saturday, on the eve of the International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances.
According to Anadolu Agency, the Palestinian Center for Missing and Forcibly Disappeared Persons issued the estimate based on an analytical study of a sample of 317 cases. The findings indicated the need for an investigation into a potential broader pattern of enforced disappearances in Gaza. The study, based on reports from families and field documentation, did not encompass all cases of missing or forcibly disappeared individuals in the region.
The examination of 317 cases revealed that 302, or 95.27%, were males, while 15 were females. The sample included 41 children and 17 individuals aged 60 or older. Gaza City recorded the highest number of cases with 89, followed by northern Gaza with 74, Khan Younis with 59, central Gaza with 37, and Rafah with 32.
Regarding circumstances, 76 cases occurred during Israeli military raids on homes or neighborhood sieges, while 60 happened as people attempted to return to their homes or retrieve necessities. Forty-two cases were recorded during displacement or at military checkpoints, and 39 were noted while individuals were searching for food or waiting for aid. Additionally, 22 cases were linked to medical facility sieges or patient transfers, and 10 involved journalistic or fieldwork.
Separately, the organization estimated that 4,000 to 5,000 people are missing and believed to be under the rubble of destroyed buildings, stressing that these should not be conflated with suspected enforced disappearances. In April, the Palestinian Justice Ministry reported over 11,200 Palestinians missing or forcibly disappeared since October 2023, including more than 4,700 women and children.
The UN defines enforced disappearance as an act where an individual is arrested, detained, or abducted by state authorities or actors with state support, followed by a refusal to acknowledge the deprivation of liberty or disclose the person's fate or whereabouts. The center called for the disclosure of all missing persons' fates, access for the International Committee of the Red Cross to detainees, and the establishment of an independent international mechanism to investigate and hold those responsible for enforced disappearances accountable.
With US support, Israel launched its war on the Gaza Strip in October 2023, resulting in the deaths of over 73,000 Palestinians and injuries to more than 174,000, most of whom were women and children.