Amnesty International has reported that Israel’s war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip constitutes genocide under international law, making it the first major human rights organization to make such a claim during an ongoing conflict. The 296-page report examines events in Gaza between October 2023 and July 2024 and found that Israel had committed “atrocity crimes” against Palestinians.
The report alleges that Israel’s military actions were aimed at destroying Palestinians, with the specific intent of inflicting conditions of life calculated to bring about their physical destruction. The group cited obstruction of aid, massive damage, destruction, and displacement, leading to the collapse of water, sanitation, food, and healthcare systems.
Amnesty is calling on the UN to enforce a ceasefire, impose targeted sanctions on Israeli and top Hamas officials, and for western governments such as the US, UK, and Germany to stop providing security assistance and selling arms to Israel. The group also urged the international criminal court to add genocide to its list of war crimes and to release civilian hostages.
The report comes as several legal experts and genocide studies scholars have argued that the 7 October attack on Hamas was also genocidal. Amnesty acknowledges that identifying genocide in armed conflict is complex but emphasizes the importance of recognizing it and insisting that war can never excuse it.
Source: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/dec/05/israels-war-in-gaza-amounts-to-genocide-amnesty-international-report-finds