THE HAGUE: Amnesty International said Thursday that Israel is “committing genocide” against Palestinians in Gaza since the start of the war last year, saying a new report was a “wake-up call” for the international community.
Amnesty International’s new landmark report concludes that Israeli authorities have committed – and still are committing – genocide against Palestinians in the occupied Gaza Strip.
Full report, out now.#EndGazaGenocide https://t.co/IwKzHPXqXU
— Amnesty International (@amnesty) December 5, 2024
The London-based rights organization said its findings were based on “dehumanizing and genocidal statements by Israeli government and military officials,” satellite images documenting devastation, fieldwork and ground reports from Gazans.
“Month after month, Israel has treated Palestinians in Gaza as a subhuman group unworthy of human rights and dignity, demonstrating its intent to physically destroy them,” Amnesty chief Agnes Callamard said in a statement.
“Our damning findings must serve as a wake-up call to the international community: this is genocide. It must stop now,” she said.
“There is absolutely no doubt that Israel has military objectives. But the existence of military objectives does not negate the possibility of a genocidal intent,” Callamard told AFP at a press conference in The Hague.
READ ALSO: South Korea: What Happened, and What Next?
The 300-page report cites 15 air strikes in Gaza between October 7, 2023 and April 20, which killed 334 civilians including 141 children, for which the group found “no evidence that any of these strikes were directed at a military objective.”
In addition to tens of thousands of deaths and physical and psychological trauma, the report also points to the conditions on the ground, where it said Palestinians are subjected to “malnutrition, hunger and diseases” and exposed to a “slow, calculated death.”
“States that transfer arms to Israel violate their obligations to prevent genocide under the convention and are at risk of becoming complicit,” Callamard added during the press conference.
Since October 7, at least 44,532 people have been killed in Gaza, mostly civilians, according to the Gaza health ministry, deemed reliable by the UN.
