According to official figures released by the Israeli occupation army, the number of injured soldiers and officers has reached 5,881—yet this figure notably excludes the number of killed. However, Israel’s Ministry of War’s Rehabilitation Department places the number at nearly 15,000 wounded soldiers, three times higher than the army’s claim.
Koch Revital, a correspondent for the Hebrew-language platform “The Hottest Place in Hell”, revealed that these numbers have become a source of internal pressure for the Israeli army. Early in the war, the military refused to release injury figures and focused solely on fatalities. For instance, by November 27—50 days into the war—the army stated that only 1,000 soldiers were wounded. But just two weeks later, on December 8, over 5,000 wounded soldiers had been admitted to hospitals. The following day, the army deleted the statistic, claiming it was inaccurate.
Official Inconsistencies and Public Deception
The deleted data was replaced by a more conservative figure: 2,000 injured soldiers, designated as new members of the disabled veterans’ program. On December 10, and only after public and media pressure, the army spokesperson officially acknowledged 1,593 injured soldiers—despite Limor Luria, Head of the Rehabilitation Division, informing the Knesset that 2,816 injured soldiers had already been admitted into care. This number did not even include active-duty soldiers.
Simultaneously, the army’s own Manpower Directorate had quietly recorded the official number of 5,881 injured since the beginning of the war.
By March 9, 2025, the number of wounded soldiers who left active duty surpassed 10,000, while the combined number of killed and wounded Israeli troops reached 12,000. However, the army admitted it does not count soldiers with light injuries, those not hospitalised, or those suffering mental health damage—a tactic that dramatically underestimates the real cost of the war.
Widening Gaps Between Official Reports
During a Knesset committee meeting on March 9, focused on the needs of injured soldiers who rely on foreign caregivers, Levy Zeik, Head of the Medical Services Classification Unit at the Ministry of War, stated that over 62,000 soldiers have been wounded since the war began.
This vast gap between government branches—the Ministry of War, the army, and the rehabilitation division—raises serious concerns about transparency, cost suppression, and public misinformation.
The army’s apparent motive? Minimise the perceived cost of the war—economically, psychologically, and politically.
Mental Injuries & Long-Term Disabilities Ignored
The army has also tried to downplay the severity of injuries. Soldiers who suffered injuries like shrapnel to the eye, for example, are not considered severely wounded unless they faced life-threatening conditions. Yet many of these soldiers are now legally blind, unable to return to service.
By December 2024, 6,410 soldiers had submitted disability claims for mental trauma. By April 2025, this number climbed to 7,300. These cases are underreported and underrepresented in military statistics.
Historical Manipulation for Political Legitimacy
Israeli historian Lee Mordechai, who has tracked war data since the conflict’s beginning, stated that the discrepancies stem from institutional conflicts of interest. The military benefits from minimising the injury count to reduce the apparent price tag of the war, aligning with a broader propaganda strategy to legitimise the conflict and ensure public compliance.
“We are not being told the truth,” Mordechai asserted.“And military correspondents, instead of challenging these figures, simply copy and paste what they’re given—raising legitimate fears that the Israeli public is being manipulated.”
Mordechai noted that the army only admitted the injury numbers after the Rehabilitation Department began leaking data, making it impossible to keep the real figures hidden.
Cost of War Hidden from the Public
With injury numbers scattered, definitions manipulated, and mental trauma disregarded, the Israeli occupation attempts to shield the public from the real toll of its ongoing war in Gaza. The goal is clear: conceal the human and financial cost to preserve morale and avoid accountability.
