RAMALLAH, Wednesday, October 11, 2023 (WAFA) - Palestinian human rights organizations strongly condemned Israel’s widespread and systematic targeting of civilians in the Gaza Strip, which may amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity, warranting the intervention of the international community to ensure accountability.
Over the past two days, the Israeli army has conducted a relentless series of attacks by air, sea, and land against the civilian population in Gaza, destroying dozens of houses with their residents still inside, residential and commercial buildings—often without issuing precautionary warnings—and wiping out entire Palestinian families. Mosques and medical facilities have also come under attack, said a statement issued by Palestinian human rights organizations.
The population is being urged, by means of random texts, to evacuate their homes, heightening fear, terror and panic among the civilian population whilst warplanes hover constantly. According to the Palestinian Ministry of Health, between 7 October and as of 3 p.m. on 9 October 2023, 560 Palestinians have been killed, and 2,900 have been injured. Hundreds of homes have been destroyed, resulting in the displacement of thousands of civilians. Water and electricity supplies continue to be cut off, said the statement.
Al-Mezan, Al-Haq, and the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights strongly condemned Israel’s widespread and systematic targeting of civilians in the Gaza Strip, which may amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity, warranting the intervention of the international community to ensure accountability.
In armed conflicts, all civilians and civilian objects must always be protected. All parties must abide by their legal obligations under international human rights and humanitarian law—including the principles of distinction, proportionality, and precaution regulating the conduct of hostilities. Israel must not treat the entire Gaza Strip as a single military objective. It is prohibited to treat as a single military objective, a number of clearly separate military objectives located in a town or city with concentrations of civilian objects.
The number of people forcibly displaced from their homes has increased. The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) announced that it is now providing shelters to around 73,538 internally displaced persons in 64 of its schools across the Gaza Strip, including 45 designated for emergencies. Thousands more are expected to have taken shelter with their extended families. UNRWA has also announced that 14 of its schools were damaged. Our organizations have documented the direct targeting of some of these schools.
As part of its total warfare against the Palestinian civilian population, the Israeli government cut off electricity and water supplies to the Gaza Strip, where now electricity supply does not exceed 4 hours a day. This foreshadows catastrophic consequences in light of the disruption of water and sewage plants. The Palestinian Water Authority estimated the decrease in water supply at 40 per cent due to the interruption of supply by Mekorot, the Israeli national water company.
The Palestinian Centre for Human Rights, Al-Haq and Al Mezan condemned in the strongest terms the targeting of civilians and the destruction of homes and other private and public structures. “We further condemn terrorizing the people of Gaza and displacing thousands of them from their homes, the denial of the protected civilians their right to access water and electricity. These acts are in breach of international law and are considered a collective punishment and clear war crimes.
Gaza’s protected civilian population, especially women and children, are the ones paying the price for the lack of will and inaction on the part of the international community to put an end to Israeli crimes against the Palestinian people, and address the root causes of the current situation in Palestine. As we write, Israeli crimes are increasing, also in light of the international community's silence, a catastrophic humanitarian outcome is looming in Gaza, they said.
“Our organizations call for respect for the principles of international humanitarian law and to refrain from targeting civilians under all circumstances, including targeting the civilian economic infrastructure damaging civilian livelihoods, and preventing the provision of humanitarian supplies. We call on the international community to take urgent action to stop attacks and protect civilians as an integral part of their legal obligations.”
They equally renewed their call on the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court to expedite the investigation into the situation in Palestine to hold those responsible for committing international crimes accountable.
They called on the peoples of the world, solidarity groups and friends of Palestine to continue to pressure their governments to take urgent action to stop the Israeli military attacks and to protect civilians, their property, and the indispensable facilities needed in Gaza.
T.R.
