Was Hamas’ recent attack on Israel the deadliest single day for Jews since the Holocaust?
Roughly 250 people were killed during Hamas’ Oct. 11 attack on Israel, according to multiple sources. Nearly three in four Israelis are Jewish.
U.S. Special Anti-semitism Envoy Deborah Lipstadt called the attacks “the most lethal assault against Jews since the Holocaust” and former Israeli Defense Forces spokesperson Lt. Col. Jonathan Conricus said it was “by far the worst day in Israeli history.”
“There have been bloody days in Israel’s history and for Jews around the world since 1945, but none has had a civilian death toll this high,” The Times of Israel reported.
During the largest murder campaign of the Holocaust, 14,348 Jews were killed per day.
Roughly 6,373 Israelis died between 1947 and 1949 during the Arab-Israeli War, which displaced 700,000 Palestinians. The deadliest Israeli loss (estimated 127) then was the Kfar Etzion massacre.
From 2008 through August, 308 Israelis and 6,407 Palestinians have died in the ongoing conflict.
Editor's Note (10/18/23): This brief removed an incorrect reference to the Arab-Israeli War as Nakba. Nakba refers to the displacement of Palestinians during the war. Additionally, this brief was updated to include Palestinian casualties.
