Today marks the six-month mark since that Black Shabbat of October 7, 2023, when Hamas-ruled Gaza declared war on Israel.
Following the savage terrorist invasion of southern Israel, the Jewish state mobilized for war, and tens of thousands have now been on the battlefields for half-a-year, with no clear end in sight.
The following are the relevant numbers pertaining to the war from the Israeli point of view.
IDF casualties:
- 600 killed
- 3,188 wounded
- 10,500 “shell-shocked” (85% of whom returned to combat)
- 1,900 received psychological treatment (85% of whom returned to combat)
Terrorist casualties:
- 13,000 terrorists killed
- 125 senior commanders eliminated
- 33,000 terror-related targets bombed
Mobilization:
- 300,000 reserve soldiers mobilized
- 17% of mobilized reservists are women
- 77% of mobilized reservists are between the ages of 20-39
Rocket attacks:
- 12,000 rockets fired at Israeli towns
Humanitarian aid:
- 369,990 tons of humanitarian aid transferred to Gaza by land
- 50 humanitarian air drops comprising 3,000 aid packages
- 15.5 million calls to Gaza civilians to evacuate prior to military strikes
- 9.3 million leaflets dropped urging civilians to move out of combat zones
The Iron Swords War has also seen unprecedented worldwide media coverage. Over 4,000 foreign journalists from all over the world came to Israel to cover the war, making it the most publicized event in the country.
Foreign journalists in Israel by country:
- United States – 824
- Great Britain – 595
- France – 488
- Germany – 170
- Turkey – 154
- Japan 140
- Italy – 131
- Spain – 127
- Scandinavia – 120
- Canada – 86
- India – 94
- Australia – 76
- Greece – 63
- Russia – 44
- China – 42
- Belgium – 38
- Romania – 36
- Argentina – 36
- Portugal – 24
- Mexico – 22
- Azerbaijan – 15
- Slovakia – 14
- Albania – 8
- Uruguay – 9
- Nepal – 8
- New Zealand – 8
- Georgia – 7
- Ukraine – 2
- Ghana – 1
- Singapore – 1
- Nigeria – 1
- Armenia – 1
- Senegal – 1
Israel has gone out of its way to accommodate this flood of foreign media, including conducting nearly 60 tours of the war zones in southern Israel, and numerous screenings of the “horror film” detailing the brutal Oct. 7 attacks.
Government Press Office Director Nitzan Chen: “The extensive media coverage of the Iron Swords War emphasizes the great importance of this event for the international community. The coverage that was sympathetic at the beginning became a significant propaganda challenge with the IDF’s ground incursion into Gaza. We are aware of our responsibility to provide accurate and reliable information, and we will continue to do everything in our power to tell the story of the State of Israel to the world.”
