BBC Verify finds 254 IDF reviews of harm to people with no public outcome

Centre · 1BBC Verify identified 254 incidents since the start of the Gaza war in which the Israeli military (IDF) was accused of killing or injuring people and said it was investigating, but for which no outcome has been made public. 1 Mixed · 2The team used purpose-built AI tools to comb through more than 60,000 news reports, then checked incidents manually. It found 300 cases the military said it was looking into. Only 28 had outcomes published on the IDF website, and for a further 18 it was unclear whether the investigation had concluded. 1 2 Mixed · 2Of the 254 incidents, 158 occurred in Gaza, 48 in the West Bank and 32 in Lebanon, and 16 in Israel or IDF detention. They happened between 7 October 2023 and 19 August 2026, and at least one person was reportedly killed in more than 200 of them. 1 2

Mixed · 2Among the oldest unresolved cases is an August 2024 strike on a Gaza school building in which at least 93 people were reportedly killed, including six women and 11 children. Another is the December 2023 killing of Nahida and Samar Anton, a mother and daughter, by sniper fire in the grounds of Gaza's Holy Family church, according to the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem. The IDF first said it was conducting a thorough review, said in September 2025 that the FFAM was still reviewing it, and again said this month that the incident is under review. 1 2 Centre · 1BBC Verify approached the IDF about each case several times but received information on only two incidents, which the IDF said were still under review. In statements the IDF said it takes every allegation "with the utmost seriousness" and publishes outcomes "when possible, subject to legal and operational considerations, as well as restrictions relating to privacy and information security". It also said complex incidents may need considerable time and that it does not shorten examination procedures to meet external timelines. 1 Mixed · 2Some cases were escalated to criminal investigation, including the killings of five-year-old Hind Rajab and of 15 Palestinian Red Crescent emergency workers. In August the IDF published a rare report on five Gaza incidents. In the three others, involving seven World Central Kitchen workers and four Médecins Sans Frontières workers, it found no basis or reasonable suspicion to open a criminal investigation. The report also said the General Staff Fact-Finding and Assessment Mechanism had completed review of about 150 cases and passed them to the Military Prosecution. The IDF did not say what those cases were or whether they overlap with the BBC's list. 1 2

Mixed · 2Dan Owen of the Israeli rights group Yesh Din said he believes the IDF tries to "prolong" investigations until people lose interest. Janina Dill, an Oxford professor of international law, said the Geneva Conventions oblige a party to a conflict to investigate its own forces, and that unresolved cases undermine Israel's claim to be a rule-of-law country. 1 2 Centre · 1Eran Shamir-Borer, a former top IDF lawyer now at the Israeli Democracy Institute, said investigating in a hostile territory poses "genuine challenges" and that investigating soldiers during war is never popular. He also said Israel would benefit from being more transparent. BBC News included his comments; the Arab News article did not. 1 Centre · 1The BBC also said Yesh Din freedom of information data showed 1,456 Gaza-related incidents were referred to the FFAM between October 2023 and August 2024. Twelve reviews were completed and referred to the Military Advocate General's Corps, and two led to criminal investigations. 1