women and children represent “nearly 70%” of deaths in the Gaza Strip, according to the UN

The UN Human Rights Office has reviewed information on 8,119 of the more than 34,500 people believed to have been killed in the first six months of the war.

Women and children represent “nearly 70%” deaths in the Gaza Strip over the period from November 2023 to April 2024, said Friday November 8 on X the UN, which carried out a verification of a partial count of the victims of the war waged by Israel against Hamas. “Report shows civilians in Gaza were hardest hit by attacks, especially during total siege” of the Gaza Strip, underlines the new report from the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights.

The UN has studied information on 8,119 of the more than 34,500 people believed to have been killed in the first six months of the war. According to the report, the proportion of women and children among these deaths is proof of“a systematic violation of the fundamental principles of international humanitarian law, in particular distinction and proportionality”. Of the verified deaths, 3,588 were children and 2,036 were women, the document said. “We believe this is representative of the distribution of the total number of deaths. A proportion similar to that given by the Gaza authorities”Ravina Shamdasani, spokeswoman for the high commission, told AFP.

“The behavior of Israeli forces has caused an unprecedented level of death, injury, starvation and disease”also denounces the report. He also condemns “illegal and persistent breaches” of the Israeli government to facilitate access to humanitarian aid, the destruction of civilian infrastructure and repeated mass displacements of the population.

The document also details a wide range of violations of international law. “In many cases”they could be assimilated to war crimes, or even, if certain circumstances were established, to crimes against humanity and “maybe to one genocide” .