December 5th 2024.
Amnesty International has released a report today, stating that they have gathered ample evidence to believe that Israel's actions during the war in Gaza can be classified as genocide against the Palestinian people. However, the Israeli government has strongly denied these allegations.
The extensive 296-page report, which took nine months to compile, details numerous instances where Amnesty claims that Israeli forces and government authorities have committed three out of five acts that are prohibited under the United Nations' Genocide Convention. These include the mass killing of Palestinian civilians, causing serious harm, and deliberately inflicting conditions on the residents of Gaza that would ultimately lead to their physical destruction.
In a statement, Amnesty International Secretary General Agnès Callamard expressed her concern, stating that Israel has been treating the Palestinians in Gaza as a subhuman group, disregarding their basic human rights and dignity. She further added that Israel's actions demonstrate their intention to physically annihilate the Palestinian people.
The report highlights that Israel is responsible for numerous indiscriminate aerial and ground attacks, widespread destruction of civilian infrastructure, forced displacement of Palestinians, and hindering humanitarian aid from reaching Gaza. The evidence presented in the report leads to one conclusion - Israel's conduct in Gaza since October 2023, including its military campaign, shows clear signs of genocidal intent.
The war in Gaza was initiated by Israel after an attack by Hamas-led militants on southern Israel in October 2023. The attack resulted in the death of 1200 people and the hostage-taking of 251 more. Since then, more than 44,000 people in Gaza have been killed, and 104,000 have been injured due to Israel's ongoing military attacks, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health.
Earlier this year, Israeli government lawyers rejected accusations of genocide leveled against them by South Africa, calling it grossly distorted. They argued that the Genocide Convention was adopted to address exceptional circumstances and not the impact of hostilities on civilians during warfare. The Israeli government called South Africa's accusation a deliberate attempt to twist the meaning of the term 'genocide.'
CNN has reached out to the Israeli military for their response to the report and its allegations. This report is the latest in a series of accusations against Israel's actions in Gaza. Recently, former Israeli Defense Minister Moshe Ya'lon, who served with the Israel Defense Forces for three decades, described the military's actions in northern Gaza as ethnic cleansing.
In November, the United Nations Special Committee warned that Israel's conduct in Gaza was consistent with the characteristics of genocide. Last month, Human Rights Watch stated that the forced displacement of Palestinians in Gaza is a war crime and a crime against humanity. However, the military has denied these accusations, stating that their actions are within international law.
The 1948 UN Genocide Convention, ratified by Israel in 1950, states that genocide occurs when any of the five prohibited acts are carried out with the intent to destroy a national, ethnic, racial, or religious group in whole or in part. Amnesty International believes that Israel's actions were carried out with the specific intent to destroy the Palestinian population in Gaza.
The report cites calls by Israeli military and government officials to target Palestinians in Gaza, using language that equates them with the enemy to be destroyed. It also points out the use of indiscriminate weapons in densely populated areas and Israeli authorities' efforts to obstruct humanitarian aid from reaching Gaza.
The investigation, which focuses on Israel's actions between October 7, 2023, and July 2024, reveals a consistent pattern of targeting residential buildings and civilian infrastructure in densely populated areas, including schools, religious sites, and markets. The Israeli military has stated that they make significant efforts to minimize harm to civilians, but they also accuse Hamas of exploiting the civilian environment during the conflict.
Amnesty International has released a report detailing evidence that suggests Israel has committed genocide against the Palestinian people during the war in Gaza. This claim has been vehemently denied by the Israeli government, but Amnesty stands by their findings.
The extensive 296-page report, which took nine months to compile, outlines multiple instances in which Israeli forces and government authorities allegedly committed acts prohibited under the United Nations' Genocide Convention. These include the mass killing of Palestinian civilians, causing serious physical or mental harm, and deliberately inflicting conditions of life calculated to bring about their physical destruction.
Agnès Callamard, Secretary General of Amnesty International, stated that Israel has consistently treated Palestinians in Gaza as subhuman and unworthy of human rights and dignity. She further accuses Israel of demonstrating a clear intent to physically destroy the Palestinian people.
According to the report, Israel is responsible for numerous indiscriminate attacks using both aerial and ground forces, resulting in the widespread destruction of civilian infrastructure. Additionally, Amnesty claims that Israel has forcibly displaced Palestinians and obstructed humanitarian aid in the besieged enclave.
The report states that the evidence presented leads to only one reasonable conclusion: that Israel has had genocidal intent since the start of their military campaign on October 7, 2023. This campaign was launched in response to an attack carried out by Hamas-led militants, which resulted in the death of 1200 people and the taking of 251 hostages.
Since then, the Palestinian Ministry of Health reports that over 44,000 people have been killed and 104,000 injured due to Israel's ongoing military onslaught.
The Israeli government has rejected these accusations of genocide, stating that they are grossly distorted and that the UN Genocide Convention was not intended to address the impact of warfare on civilians. They have also accused South Africa of perverting the meaning of the term "genocide" in their accusations.
CNN has reached out to the Israeli military for their reaction to the report, but has not yet received a response.
This is not the first time Israel has faced accusations over their conduct in Gaza. Former Israeli Defense Minister Moshe Ya'lon, who served for three decades with the Israel Defense Forces, has described their actions in northern Gaza as ethnic cleansing. A United Nations Special Committee has warned that Israel's conduct in Gaza is consistent with the characteristics of genocide, and Human Rights Watch has accused them of war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Amnesty International's report focuses on Israel's actions between October 7, 2023, and July 2024. They believe that Israel's acts were committed with the specific intent to destroy Palestinians in Gaza, citing language used by Israeli military and government officials that equates Palestinian civilians with the enemy to be destroyed. They also point to the use of indiscriminate weapons in densely populated areas and efforts by Israeli authorities to obstruct or prevent humanitarian aid from reaching Gaza.
The Israeli military maintains that they make significant efforts to mitigate harm to civilians and that Hamas exploits the civilian environment during conflicts. The investigation into Israel's actions is ongoing.
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