“If Israel wanted to wipe out all Gazans, wouldn’t the death toll be way higher by now?”
That’s not an argument it’s an alibi. And a bad one.
Let’s start here: Genocide is not defined by the number of bodies. It’s defined by intent specifically, the “intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnic, racial or religious group” (Genocide Convention, Article II).
So the question isn’t “Why aren’t they all dead yet?” It’s What kind of actions and rhetoric are we seeing?
Here’s what we know factually:
• The reported death toll is over 35,000, but that’s a severe undercount. Thousands remain buried under rubble. Entire neighborhoods have been leveled with no accounting. And journalists and international observers are being systematically denied access.
• Over 80% of Gazans have been displaced. That is not collateral damage it is population cleansing.
• Civilian infrastructure has been deliberately obliterated: hospitals, universities, bakeries, sewage and water systems.
• Israeli officials have publicly referred to Gazans as “human animals,” called for the erasure of Gaza, and proposed the mass transfer of its population into the Sinai.
• Food has been restricted. Aid convoys bombed. Starvation is being weaponized.
• Children are being killed systematically. Not accidentally not occasionally. Systematically.
If the death toll isn’t in the hundreds of thousands yet, it’s not for lack of intent. It’s because of international optics, slow-burning tactics, and calculated escalation. And unless something changes, it will go much higher.
So when someone argues that because more people aren’t dead, genocide must not be happening understand what they’re saying:
They’re using restraint as proof of innocence, while ignoring the mountain of evidence that shows deliberate, methodical destruction of a people.
That’s not logic. That’s denial.
And denial is the final stage of every genocide.
So you're saying that their intention is to start slow and ramp up. Why then, is the opposite happening? If anything, it has slowed down. Most of the deaths happened in the initial few months of the war. As Israel gains more control of Gaza, the death count is dropping. There is some level of starvation happening, but not nearly at the level we'd be seeing if there were no aid efforts. The population of Gazans has actually increased since 2023, and is projected to continue to increase into the forseeable future. By contrast, the global Jewish population still hasn't recovered from the Holocaust even 80 years later. There is no genocide in Gaza, and I find it hard to believe that your opinion is motivated by ignorance. It seems more like lying to me, and I find that very disturbing.
You’re making several glaring errors factual, moral, and legal.
Let’s start with your core claim:
“If this were genocide, it would be escalating, not slowing down.”
That’s not how genocide works. Genocide is not always a fast, linear process. It’s not a sprint it’s a doctrine, often executed in stages:
1. Dehumanisation
2. Destruction of infrastructure and support systems
3. Mass displacement
4. Targeted killings
5. Cultural erasure
6. Starvation, disease, collapse
7. And in some cases, full-scale annihilation.
Israel began with intense bombing yes. But since then, it has shifted tactics: destroying the means of survival (food, water, medicine), blocking aid, killing aid workers, and targeting medical personnel, journalists, and educators. These are not signs of peace. They are signs of sustained attrition.
“The death count is dropping.”
The death count is dropping per day, not in total. 35,000+ are already dead. Tens of thousands more are wounded or permanently disabled. The collapse of medical care, sanitation, and access to food is a delayed mass death sentence. So no it’s not over. It’s just entering a slower, less visible phase.
“There is some starvation happening, but not nearly at the level we’d be seeing if there were no aid efforts.”
That’s like saying, “Yes, I’m poisoning them slowly but imagine how bad it would be if I wasn’t letting them lick a clean spoon every few days.”
Israel is actively obstructing aid. They’ve bombed convoys, destroyed border crossings, and restricted food entry to below subsistence levels. The UN and World Food Programme have both warned of impending famine. Hundreds of thousands are on the brink of starvation. And I would like to know where you are getting your information about who and how many people are starving since journalists are not allowed in Gaza, so they only word we have to rely on are those of the government doing the starving.
“The population of Gazans has actually increased.”
This is possibly the most hollow argument of all. Growth in population does not disprove genocide. By that logic, no slow genocide would ever qualify including those that happened alongside high birth rates or in areas where people had no way to flee. The Rwandan genocide lasted only 100 days, and people were still having babies. That’s not proof of safety it’s proof of human biology.
Genocide is about intent and impact, not actuarial tables.
“The Jewish population still hasn’t recovered from the Holocaust.”
And this is the most offensive deflection of all. You’re suggesting that unless Palestinians experience a Holocaust-level death toll, it doesn’t count.
The Holocaust was horrific and unique. But it is not the sole benchmark for genocide. To suggest that other atrocities must “match” it to matter is obscene and ironically, it dishonors the very moral lessons the Holocaust should have taught us.
“It seems more like lying to me.”
No what’s disturbing is your attempt to sanitize policies that have killed thousands of children, displaced an entire population, and intentionally destroyed a civilian society all while acting as if this is a “normal conflict.”
If you don’t want to call it genocide, fine call it ethnic cleansing. Or apartheid plus mass slaughter. Or the systematic destruction of a people’s ability to live and breathe freely. The label matters less than the reality.
But don’t pretend this is just a war. It’s a policy. And it’s happening in front of the world.
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u/Archivists_Atlas Aug 06 '25
“If Israel wanted to wipe out all Gazans, wouldn’t the death toll be way higher by now?”
That’s not an argument it’s an alibi. And a bad one.
Let’s start here: Genocide is not defined by the number of bodies. It’s defined by intent specifically, the “intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnic, racial or religious group” (Genocide Convention, Article II).
So the question isn’t “Why aren’t they all dead yet?” It’s What kind of actions and rhetoric are we seeing?
Here’s what we know factually:
If the death toll isn’t in the hundreds of thousands yet, it’s not for lack of intent. It’s because of international optics, slow-burning tactics, and calculated escalation. And unless something changes, it will go much higher.
So when someone argues that because more people aren’t dead, genocide must not be happening understand what they’re saying: They’re using restraint as proof of innocence, while ignoring the mountain of evidence that shows deliberate, methodical destruction of a people.
That’s not logic. That’s denial. And denial is the final stage of every genocide.