Netanyahu: 1,200 Israelis killed on 7 October equal to 40,000 Americans

JERUSALEM: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said that the killing of 1,200 Israelis on 7 October was equal to the killing of 40,000 Americans.

He described the deaths of about 1,200 Israelis in the Hamas attack of 7 October 2023 as equal, in proportion to population, to the deaths of 40,000 Americans.

In an interview with CNN, he said that, given Israel’s population of about 10 million, the killing of 1,200 people in a single day was like about 40,000 people being killed in one day in the United States.

He had given the same example in his address to the United Nations General Assembly, saying that the 7 October attack was for Israel equal to events like 16 September 11.

Netanyahu used the example to explain the severity of the 7 October attack on Israel. He said that after the attack it was unavoidable for Israel to take military action against Hamas.