UN Experts Accuse Israel of 'Genocide' Against Palestinians in Gaza

The United Nations has announced in a recent report that Israel has committed 'genocide' against Palestinians in Gaza through 'systematic destruction of women's health centers' and 'use of sexual violence as a war strategy' during the conflict. The UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry emphasized that Israel has 'destroyed part of the reproductive capacity of Palestinians in Gaza through systematic destruction of sexual and reproductive health.' In response to this report, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office called it 'incorrect and hollow.' The Permanent Mission of Israel to the UN in Geneva also described the accusations as 'baseless, biased, and without credibility.' The extremist group Hamas, which the US and Europe consider a terrorist organization, attacked southern Israel on October 7, 2023, leading to a devastating 15-month war in the Gaza Strip. The UN Commission of Inquiry stated that Israel 'deliberately' targeted the main reproductive center of Palestinians in Gaza and simultaneously blocked the entry of aid, including medications necessary for safe pregnancy, childbirth, and neonatal care. According to the report, these actions, along with the increase in maternal mortality due to limited access to medical supplies, amount to 'crimes against humanity' aimed at 'destroying Palestinians as a group.' The report also noted that hospitals and maternity wards in Gaza, including the main IVF center in the area, have been 'systematically' destroyed. The commission concluded that Israeli security forces 'deliberately' targeted the main fertility clinic in Gaza and 'destroyed all stored fertility materials for the future reproduction of Palestinians.' These 'unprecedented violations' have caused not only 'severe physical and psychological harm and immense suffering' to women and girls but will also have 'irreversible effects' on the mental health and reproductive prospects of Palestinians as a group. The three-member independent international commission was established by the UN Human Rights Council in May 2021 to investigate potential violations of international law in Israel and the Palestinian territories. Israel has accused this commission of promoting 'a predetermined and biased political agenda... in a shameless attempt to accuse its defense forces.' The report further accused Israeli forces of using methods such as 'forced public nudity and sexual assault as part of their standard operational procedures to punish Palestinians' following the Hamas-led attacks on southern Israel in October 2023. Navi Pillay, chair of the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territories, stated: 'The evidence gathered by the commission indicates a troubling increase in sexual and gender-based violence.' She added that 'there is no way to escape the conclusion that Israel has used sexual and gender-based violence against Palestinians to intimidate them and continue a system of oppression that undermines their right to self-determination.' The commission conducted interviews with victims and witnesses and reviewed and analyzed evidence containing photos and videos in this regard. The commission's findings include areas of the Gaza Strip, the occupied West Bank, and East Jerusalem from October 7, 2023, onwards, the day on which the extremist group Hamas and other armed Palestinian groups launched a widespread attack on Israel, resulting in approximately 1,200 deaths and around 250 kidnappings. The war that followed with Israel's attack on the Gaza Strip has, according to health officials in Gaza, led to the deaths of more than 48,000 Palestinians and the destruction of about 90% of the infrastructure in the strip. Israel has rejected these accusations, and its mission in Geneva stated: 'The Israel Defense Forces have specific guidelines and policies that clearly prohibit such misconduct.' A previous report by the commission published in June 2024 also accused Hamas and other armed Palestinian groups of serious human rights violations in the October 7, 2023 attack on Israel, including 'torture and degrading treatment.' Israel is a member of the Genocide Convention, and the International Criminal Court in The Hague ordered Israel in January 2024 to take necessary measures to prevent genocide during the war with Hamas. The UN Genocide Convention defines this crime as actions aimed at the complete or partial destruction of a national, ethnic, racial, or religious group. Amnesty International also published a report in Azar 1403 concluding that Israel is committing 'genocide' against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. Human Rights Watch also stated in the same month that Israel has 'deliberately' restricted Palestinians' access to water in the Gaza Strip, which could constitute 'genocide.' Shortly before these two statements, the International Criminal Court in The Hague issued arrest warrants for Benjamin Netanyahu, the Prime Minister of Israel, Yoav Galant, the former Minister of Defense, and Mohammed Diab al-Masri, known as 'Deif,' the 'killed' commander of the extremist group Hamas. These warrants were issued due to the actions of the Israeli army on charges of 'war crimes' and 'crimes against humanity' in the Gaza war and also the operations of the extremist group Hamas against Israeli citizens.