Civilians have borne the brunt of the conflict, including through the initial full siege of Gaza by Israeli forces, the destruction of civilian infrastructure, and the Israeli government’s continued illegal refusal to facilitate humanitarian aid into the Strip. HR Office Report: Perpetrators of International Law Violations in Gaza Must Be Punished International Law
The UN Human Rights Office today released a report detailing the horrific reality faced by people in Israel and Gaza since October 7, 2023. The report stresses that those responsible for gross violations of international law must be held accountable.
The detailed analysis of violations covers a six-month period from November 2023 to April 2024 and concerns the killing of civilians and other violations that in many cases may amount to war crimes. If these violations are committed as part of a widespread attack directed against a civilian population, pursuant to the policy of a State or organization, they may constitute crimes against humanity, the report says.
And if they are committed with the intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnic, racial or religious group, they may also constitute genocide, the report warns.
Israel’s International Obligations
“The International Court of Justice, in its orders on provisional measures, has emphasized Israel’s international obligations to prevent, protect against and punish acts of genocide,” the Office’s experts said.
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk stressed the need for Israel to fully and immediately implement these obligations, particularly given the most recent developments, including Israel’s operations in northern Gaza and its adoption of legislation affecting UNRWA operations.
“It is essential that allegations of serious violations of international law are duly addressed through credible and impartial judicial bodies and that all necessary information and evidence are collected and preserved,” he said.
Türk recalled the obligations of States to take measures to prevent atrocity crimes and called on them to support the work of accountability mechanisms, including the International Criminal Court, to investigate crimes against international law in national courts in accordance with international standards, and to comply with extradition requests for suspects.
Unprecedented Suffering in Gaza
The report points to repeated statements by Israeli officials that an end to the conflict depends on the complete destruction of Gaza and the exodus of the Palestinian people. It also documents efforts to rationalize discrimination, hostility, violence, and even extermination against Palestinians.
The report describes how civilians have borne the brunt of the conflict, including through the initial “total siege” of Gaza by Israeli forces, the destruction of civilian infrastructure, and the Israeli government’s continued illegal refusal to facilitate the entry of humanitarian aid into the Strip. This behavior of the Israeli forces resulted in an unprecedented number of killings, deaths, injuries and diseases, as well as starvation.
Hamas Crimes
On October 7, 2023, Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups committed serious violations of international law on a large scale, the report says, including attacks on Israeli and foreign civilians, killing and ill-treating civilians, sexual violence, destroying civilian objects, and taking hostages.
These actions may amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity, the report says. Since October 7, Hamas and other armed groups have “celebrated the attacks of that day,” which is completely unacceptable.
Rules of War
“The rules of war, which have been in force for 160 years, were designed to limit and prevent human suffering during armed conflicts,” Türk said.
“Their flagrant disregard has led to the extreme forms of human suffering that we continue to witness today. It is inconceivable that parties to a conflict would refuse to apply universally recognized and binding rules designed to preserve the bare minimum of humanity,” he added.
Most of the victims in Gaza were women and children
The UN Human Rights Office is trying to establish the identities of those killed in Gaza as a result of strikes, shelling and other fighting. To date, it has established that nearly 70 per cent of the victims are children and women, revealing systematic violations of fundamental principles of international humanitarian law, including the principles of distinction and proportionality in military action.
The report describes a “clear indifference to the loss of civilian lives and the consequences of the means and methods of warfare chosen.”
According to the Office, the high number of casualties was due mainly to the use of wide-area weapons by the Israeli Defence Forces in densely populated areas. Some of the deaths of Palestinian civilians may have been the result of accidental hits by shells fired by Palestinian armed groups.
The violence must stop
The High Commissioner calls on UN Member States, in accordance with their obligations under international law, to review the sale or transfer of arms and the provision of military, logistical or financial support to a party to the conflict, with a view to ending such support where this would constitute serious violations of international law.
“The trends and patterns of violations, as well as the applicable principles of international law as explained by the International Court of Justice, should serve as the basis for measures to end the current crisis,” he said. Turk.
“The violence must stop immediately, the hostages and arbitrarily detained must be released, and we must focus on delivering more humanitarian aid to Gaza,” he added.