Children in a camp for displaced persons in Gaza. UN: Israeli attacks on Gaza hospitals could amount to war crimes Peace and Security
A series of deadly Israeli attacks on hospitals in Gaza has brought the enclave’s medical system to the brink of total collapse, according to a report released Tuesday by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR). The document, covering the period from October 12, 2023 to June 30, 2024, expressed serious concerns about Israel’s compliance with international law.
Medical personnel and hospitals have special protection under international humanitarian law, as long as they are not used for actions that harm a party to the conflict.
Hospitals must be protected
“As if the endless bombing and dire humanitarian situation in Gaza were not enough, the only refuge where Palestinians could feel safe has become a death trap. The protection of hospitals in times of war is of the utmost importance and must be respected by all parties, at all times,” said UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk.
During the reporting period, at least 136 attacks on 27 hospitals and 12 other health facilities were recorded, resulting in significant casualties among doctors, nurses, medics and civilians, as well as severe damage to civilian infrastructure. For example, the destruction of Kamal Adwan Hospital by the Israeli military last week left residents of northern Gaza with virtually no access to health care.
In exceptional cases, where medical personnel, ambulances and hospitals lose their special protection because they function as military objectives, attacks on them must comply with the fundamental principles of distinction, proportionality and precaution, OHCHR stressed. Failure to respect these principles constitutes a violation of international humanitarian law.
War Crimes and Crimes against Humanity
Deliberate attacks on hospitals and places where the sick and wounded are treated (provided they are not military objectives), attacks against civilians, and disproportionate attacks resulting in death or injury to civilians constitute war crimes, the report says. In certain circumstances, the deliberate destruction of medical facilities may constitute a form of collective punishment, which is also a war crime.
The authors of the report also note that such acts, if committed as part of a widespread or systematic attack against a civilian population, carried out pursuant to State or organizational policy, may amount to crimes against humanity.
Independent Investigations
In most cases, Israel claims that hospitals were used by Palestinian armed groups for military purposes. However, insufficient information has been provided to substantiate these allegations, the report says. If evidence is obtained, it would raise serious concerns about the use of civilians as cover, which also constitutes a war crime.
“Independent, thorough and transparent investigations into all incidents are essential, as well as full accountability for all violations of international humanitarian and human rights law,” Türk stressed. “All health workers arbitrarily detained must be released immediately,” he added.
258 UNRWA staff killed
Meanwhile, the Commissioner-General of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), Philippe Lazzarini, wrote on his X page today that fifteen months after the war in Gaza began, the horrors continue. During that time, he said, 258 UNRWA staff have been killed, nearly 650 attacks against the agency’s buildings and facilities have been documented, at least 745 people have been killed in UNRWA shelters, and more than 2,200 have been injured. More than two-thirds of the agency’s buildings are now damaged or destroyed, most of which were schools before the war, Lazzarini noted.
“We continue to receive reports that Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups have used our facilities. In some cases, we have also been able to confirm that our facilities have been occupied by Israeli forces,” the head of UNRWA said in a statement.
He also said that at least 20 of the agency’s staff are being held in Israeli detention centers, and that those released have previously reported systematic ill-treatment, humiliation and torture. According to Lazzarini, attacks on UNRWA have increased significantly in northern Gaza since the military operation escalated three months ago.
“I reiterate my call for independent investigations into the systematic disregard for the protection of humanitarian workers, facilities and operations. This must not become the new normal, and impunity the new standard,” he stressed.