# Does Hamas account for deaths caused by Hamas itself in the Gaza death toll?

*Van Hoer Center · The Conflict Decoded · The Gaza war and its toll · October 31, 2026* · https://vanhoercenter.com/decoded/does-hamas-account-for-deaths-caused-by-hamas-itself-in-the-gaza-death-toll

No — the Gaza death toll does not separate out deaths caused by Hamas itself, but that is a fact about how any wartime registry works, not evidence of a rigged count. Each entry on the Gaza Health Ministry's published lists records a name, identity number, sex, age and date of death — no field records who fired the shot — so a civilian killed by a misfired rocket is counted the same as one killed in an airstrike. Hamas does not account for those deaths separately, and neither does anyone else.

## How the toll is compiled: the ministry's methodology

The Hamas-run ministry builds its figures from hospital and morgue records — "every person entering our hospital is recorded," says Atef Alkahlout, director of Gaza's Indonesian Hospital — plus the Palestinian Red Crescent and family reports, released with a breakdown of men, women and children. Hamas combatants who die are included like anyone else; the ministry's methodology has no carve-out for combatant deaths in either direction. Revisions since May 2024 show scrutiny works: the UN revised the *women and children* share while the overall count stood.

## Civilian casualties caused by Hamas rocket misfires

Hamas's own launches do cause civilian casualties in Gaza. The IDF reports about 550 failed launches that fell inside the Gaza Strip, with rockets fired from civilian areas — the "human shields" problem — and misfired rockets have killed and injured Palestinians throughout the war. These deaths appear in the toll like any other, with no attribution field.

## The misleading framing

Pro-Israel advocates claim the toll "includes deaths of those killed by Hamas itself" (AIJAC, Henry Jackson Society 2025) — but neither attaches a number, because none exists. AIJAC assumes 20,000 Hamas fighters dead, then blames residual civilian deaths on Hamas misfires, though the IDF counts some 550 failed launches inside Gaza. Even the Washington Institute affirms that the ministry's reported counts historically matched UN and Israeli figures ([The Washington Institute](https://www.washingtoninstitute.org/policy-analysis/heres-real-problem-uns-revised-gaza-death-toll); [AOAV](https://aoav.org.uk/2024/critically-assessing-casualty-claims-in-gaza-are-80-of-the-dead-hamas-operatives/); [The Hanover Institute](https://hanoverinstitute.com/research/hamas-caused-deaths-and-the-casualty-fields)).

## Sources

1. Even the Washington Institute affirms that the ministry's reported counts historically matched UN and Israeli figures — washingtoninstitute.org — https://www.washingtoninstitute.org/policy-analysis/heres-real-problem-uns-revised-gaza-death-toll
2. …the Washington Institute affirms that the ministry's reported counts historically matched UN and Israeli figures (The Washington Institute — aoav.org.uk — https://aoav.org.uk/2024/critically-assessing-casualty-claims-in-gaza-are-80-of-the-dead-hamas-operatives/
3. AOAV — hanoverinstitute.com — https://hanoverinstitute.com/research/hamas-caused-deaths-and-the-casualty-fields

## See also

- [Are Gaza's casualty figures propaganda?](https://vanhoercenter.com/decoded/are-gazas-casualty-figures-propaganda)
- [Did IDF strikes stop at the Gaza ceasefire?](https://vanhoercenter.com/decoded/did-idf-strikes-stop-at-the-gaza-ceasefire)
- [Did the IDF approve a strike expecting 500 civilian deaths?](https://vanhoercenter.com/decoded/did-the-idf-approve-a-strike-expecting-500-civilian-deaths)
- [Did the IDF strike Gaza neighborhoods it knew were still populated?](https://vanhoercenter.com/decoded/did-the-idf-strike-gaza-neighborhoods-it-knew-were-still-populated)