The report states that at least 2,842 people have been documented as disappeared by Gaza’s Civil Defence teams, based on forensic field records compiled in the aftermath of air strikes and bombardments. The figure is drawn from data collected on the ground by emergency responders working at strike sites across the enclave.
Mahmoud Basal, spokesperson for Gaza’s Civil Defence, described the process used to account for victims. He said teams apply a “method of elimination” when entering targeted homes. Responders compare the number of known occupants with the bodies recovered. If, for example, a family reports that five people were inside a house and only three intact bodies are found, the remaining individuals are classified as missing after exhaustive searches yield only biological traces, such as blood spray or small fragments.
