Amnesty International: Israel is committing genocide in Gaza

2024-12-05 19:54:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

Amnesty International has accused Israel of committing genocide in the Gaza Strip in its fight against Hamas, saying it aims to deliberately destroy Palestinians by carrying out bloody attacks, destroying vital infrastructure and preventing the entry of food, medicine and other aid. .

In a report published today, the human rights organization states that Israel's actions cannot be justified by the October 7, 2023, attack by Hamas that triggered the war in Gaza, nor by the presence of militants in civilian-populated areas. . Amnesty International says the United States and Israel's other allies may be complicit in the genocide and called on them to halt arms shipments to Israel.

"Our shocking findings should serve as a wake-up call to the international community: this is genocide. It must be put to an end immediately" , declared the General Secretary of the organization, Agnes Callamard.

Israel, which was founded as a state after the Holocaust, has rejected accusations that it is committing genocide, condemning them as fueled by anti-Semitism. The State of Israel is facing similar charges at the International Court of Justice, while contesting accusations brought by the International Criminal Court that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant committed war crimes in Gaza.

Amnesty International's branch in Israel, which was not involved in the drafting of the report, disputed the accusations of genocide, showing a rare public split within the organization.

In its report, the organization said it analyzed Israel's actions in Gaza from October 7, 2023 to early July. Amnesty International says there is no set number of victims to prove the crime of genocide, which the United Nations defines as actions intended to partially or completely destroy a nationality, ethnic, racial or religious group.

According to Amnesty International, to prove the intent of Israel's actions, the organization reviewed over 100 statements by Israeli government and military officials since the start of the war that "dehumanized Palestinians, called for, or justified acts of genocide and other crimes against them." .

According to the organization's findings, Israel, by "making the living conditions of the Palestinians in Gaza more difficult, intended to, over time, lead to their destruction" . These actions included the destruction of homes, farms, hospitals and water supply; orders for large-scale evacuations and restrictions on humanitarian aid and other essential services.

Amnesty International also analyzed 15 airstrikes since the start of the year through April that killed at least 334 civilians, including 141 children, and wounded hundreds more. The organization says it has found no evidence that these attacks were carried out against military targets.

Israel says it has only targeted militants and blames Hamas for civilian deaths because the militant group fights in areas populated by civilians, building tunnels and infrastructure near homes, schools and mosques.

Israel also blames the United Nations for the lack of humanitarian aid, accusing it of not distributing aid from hundreds of trucks that were allowed into Gaza. The UN says the risk is often too high to deliver aid to residents and blames Israel as an occupying force for lacking the rule of law and restricting movement through the Gaza Strip.

So far, more than 44,500 people are estimated to have been killed during Israel's military campaign, according to Gaza health officials, who do not distinguish between civilians and militants, but say more than half of the victims are women and children.

The war began after Hamas attacked Israeli settlements on October 7, 2023, killing 1,200 people, most of them civilians. The militant group also took about 250 people hostage, including children and the elderly. About 100 hostages are still being held in Gaza and a third of them are believed to be dead.

Israel's offensive is among the bloodiest and most destructive campaigns since World War II./ VOA