More than 38,000 women and girls were killed in the Gaza war by the end of 2025, the United Nations has estimated, accounting for over half of the 71,000 deaths recorded by the territory’s health ministry.
Speaking at a press briefing in Geneva, UN Women spokesperson Sofia Calltorp said: “Between October 2023 and December 2025, more than 38,000 women and girls were killed in Gaza as a result of Israeli air bombardment and ground military operations.”
She said the fatalities included over 22,000 women and 16,000 girls, averaging at least 47 women and girls killed each day.
The agency noted that the figures were likely to be higher, citing bodies still trapped under rubble and significant constraints on reporting and data collection systems.
Calltorp added that women and girls accounted for a far higher proportion of deaths than in previous Gaza conflicts, referencing UN Women data showing they made up 15 per cent of fatalities in the 2008–2009 conflict and 22 per cent in 2014.
According to UN Women, those who have survived continue to face severe risks, including starvation, repeated displacement, and severely limited access to essential services.
Calltorp also said nearly 11,000 women and girls have sustained injuries so severe that they now live with lifelong disabilities.
She noted that the conflict has significantly altered family structures in Gaza, with tens of thousands of households now headed by women who have lost their husbands and are left to support families without income, assistance, or access to basic services.
Nearly one million women and girls have been repeatedly displaced during the war, while about 790,000 are facing crisis-level or catastrophic food insecurity, the agency said.
Calltorp said the broader regional conflict and border restrictions have further worsened humanitarian conditions in Gaza, limiting aid access and disrupting relief efforts.
The war, which began after Hamas’s October 7, 2023 cross-border attack on Israel, has continued despite a fragile ceasefire announced in October 2025.
According to the Gaza health ministry, at least 766 Palestinians have been killed since the truce came into effect. The ministry, which is run by Hamas, provides figures that are generally considered credible by the United Nations.
UN Women said that despite the ceasefire, violence against women and girls has persisted in recent months.
