UN experts said in a new report that Israel has committed “genocide” to Palestinians by systematically destroying women’s medical facilities during the Gaza conflict and using sexual violence as a strategy.
In a report released Thursday by the United Nations International Commission on International Independence, the occupied Palestinian territory, including East Jerusalem, Israel said the use of large amounts of explosives in civilian areas and Israeli attacks on hospitals and medical institutions.
It said these three resulted in “disproportionate violence against women and children.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejected the report’s findings, saying they were biased and anti-Semitic.
” Rather than focusing on crimes against humanity and war crimes committed by the Hamas terrorist group… the United Nations once again chose to attack the State of Israel with false accusations,” he said in a statement.
Israel disconnected from the Human Rights Commission in February.
“The Israeli authorities partially destroyed the reproductive capacity of Palestinians in Gaza, including measures aimed at preventing birth, one of the acts of genocide in Roman regulations and genocide conventions,” the UN Commission’s report said.
The committee said that in addition to the surge in maternal deaths caused by restrictions on access to medical supplies, these actions constitute crimes against human extinction.
The report accused Israeli security forces of forcing public divestment and sexual assault as part of its standard operating procedures to punish Palestinians after the attack on southern Israel in October 2023 by Hamas-led attacks.
According to Gaza health officials, the war in the Gaza Strip killed more than 48,000 Palestinians.
IDF says policy “prohibits such misconduct”
The Committee also accused Israeli security forces of committing rape and sexual violence against Palestinian detainees. Israel denies any systematic abuse of prisoners and says it will take action in the event of a violation.
Israel rejected the allegations.
“ IDF [Israeli Defence Force] Have specific directives…and policies that explicitly prohibit such misconduct.
According to the Israeli Sols, a report published in June 2024 accused Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups of violating serious rights in the 2023 attack that killed 1,200 people and caused 251 hostages.
Last March, a team of UN experts said that “sexual violence, including rape,” occurred at several locations during the militant attacks.
The committee is led by former UN human rights chief Navi Pillay. Its findings can be used as evidence for the International Criminal Court or other agencies that attempt to prosecute war crimes.
Palestinian officials say people in Gaza may soon run out of clean drinking water. After Israel cut off electricity supply from Gaza this weekend, the backup generator at a desalination plant in Deir Al-Balah has a capacity of about 30%.
Israel is a political party under the Genocide Convention, which was ordered by the International Court of Justice in January 2024 to prevent genocide during the war against Hamas.
This is not a party to the Roman statute, which gives the International Criminal Court jurisdiction to determine individual criminal cases involving genocide and crimes against humanity.
South Africa filed a genocide case for the International Court of Justice against Israel’s actions in Gaza.
