In a report released on Thursday and covering the period from October 2023 to July 2024, a special UN committee, made up of representatives from Malaysia, Senegal and Sri Lanka, estimates that “Israeli policies and practices” applied in the Gaza Strip since the deadly Hamas attack against Israel on October 7, 2023, present “elements characteristic of a genocide”.
“Through its siege of Gaza, its obstruction of humanitarian aid, its targeted attacks and killing of civilians and aid workers, despite repeated calls from the UN, binding orders from the International Court of Justice and resolutions Security Council, Israel intentionally causes death, starvation and serious injury”also believes the committee in the press release which accompanies the report.
The authors specify that they were unable to travel to the Palestinian territories. Their findings are based on consultations in Geneva and meetings in Amman, Jordan, with government officials, representatives of United Nations agencies, NGO leaders, human rights defenders and Palestinian families.
This special UN committee, created in 1968, is responsible for investigating Israeli practices in the occupied Palestinian territories. The report is due to be presented to the UN General Assembly in New York on Monday. Contacted by Agence France-Presse, the Israeli authorities had not reacted to this publication at the end of the afternoon.
For its part, Washington disapproved “unequivocally” the conclusions of the report. “We believe that this type of wording and these types of accusations are most certainly unfounded”said State Department spokesperson Vedant Patel.
