UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk. UN human rights chief ‘shocked’ by Israeli minister’s comment on need for Gaza famine Peace and Security
The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) has called on Israeli authorities to monitor senior officials whose public statements on the Gaza conflict could contribute to war crimes.
OHCHR spokesman Jeremy Lawrence said UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk was “shocked and appalled” by comments by Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich suggesting that allowing two million Palestinians in Gaza to die of starvation was “justifiable and moral” in order to free Israeli hostages. The High Commissioner condemned the comments “in the strongest possible terms,” which he said “incited hatred against innocent civilians.”
Risk of incitement
Jeremy Lawrence explained that starving civilians as a method of warfare and collective punishment of the Palestinian population constituted a war crime.
“This direct public statement risks inciting further atrocities,” he said. “Such statements, especially from government officials, must stop immediately. They must be investigated and, if found to be a crime, those responsible must be prosecuted and punished.”
The OHCHR representative reiterated his call for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, the release of all hostages and an increase in humanitarian aid flows to the enclave.
Problems with food aid delivery
The World Food Programme (WFP) meanwhile warned that ongoing fighting, damaged roads and the lack of public order and security were seriously hampering food transportation operations in Gaza, forcing the WFP to reduce rations.
In July, the organization was able to provide food assistance to a million people in the Gaza Strip, but distribution is now limited.
WFP staff have warned that they will not be able to deliver the food they need this month unless more crossings into Gaza are opened.
In the West Bank, WFP estimates that the escalation of violence could push the number of people facing food insecurity to at least 600,000.
New Evacuation Orders
Israeli military commanders have issued another evacuation order for Khan Yunis.
“We passed through Khan Yunis in the afternoon yesterday and the effects of the order were already very visible,” she said. “Hundreds of families were walking or driving along the same route from Khan Yunis to the western Gaza Strip. The scenes were horrific. Mostly people were on foot. They were carrying whatever they could carry. They seemed to have very few personal belongings left. Mothers were carrying babies in one arm and trying to hold on to other children who were walking alongside them. Children under the age of ten were carrying heavy backpacks.”
Among the displaced, Louise Wateridge said, were many elderly people who find it difficult to walk in the heat. “It’s just horrific and it’s happening over and over again,” she said.