Geneva – A senior independent rights probe appointed by the United Nations Human Rights Council alleged on Tuesday that Israel’s military actions in Gaza constitute genocide.
The legal finding by the UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry was dismissed immediately by Tel Aviv, on the same day.
The results of the Commission, described in a new report released amid intensifying Israeli military actions, called on Israel and all of the member states to comply with international law to end the genocide and to punish the culprits.
“An Intent to Destroy the Palestinians”
“The Commission finds that Israel is responsible for the commission of genocide in Gaza,” insisted Navi Pillay, the Chair of the Commission.
“It is clear that there is an intent to destroy the Palestinians in Gaza through acts that meet the criteria set forth in the Genocide Convention.”
During a press conference in Geneva, Ms. Pillay and Chris Sidoti, the members of the Commission, claimed that their inquiry found four out of the five genocidal acts as those defined by the 1948 Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide committed by Israeli authorities and security forces. These acts include:
- Killing members of the group.
- Causing serious bodily or mental harm.
- Deliberately inflicting conditions of life calculated to bring about the destruction of the Palestinians.
- Imposing measures intended to prevent births.
The report maintains that responsibility for these alleged crimes “lies with Israeli authorities at the highest echelons,” citing “explicit statements” denigrating Palestinians made by Israeli civilian and military officials.
The Commission’s findings followed a methodical examination of Israeli military operations, including the killing of “unprecedented numbers of Palestinians” and the imposition of a “total siege, including blocking humanitarian aid leading to starvation.”
The UN aid coordination wing, OCHA, has verified famine in Gaza City, where nearly one million individuals continue to stay despite a displacement order.
Israel, US, and World Leaders’ Reactions
In a statement, the Israeli Foreign Ministry called the report “fake,” stating that the three authors were “Hamas proxies, notorious for their openly antisemitic positions.”
The statement asserts that the report “relies entirely on Hamas falsehoods, laundered and repeated by others” and that these claims have been “thoroughly debunked” by an independent academic study by BESA.
The ministry also highlighted the fact that Hamas attempted genocide in Israel on October 7, 2023, and that the authors of the report have recently resigned.
“Israel categorically rejects this distorted and false report and calls for the immediate abolition of this Commission of Inquiry,” the statement concluded.
The United States has not responded formally to the report of the Commission yet.
However, at a recent Security Council session, the political affairs head of the UN, Rosemary DiCarlo, stated that a recent attack on the Hamas leadership in Qatar by Israel, which led to another emergency debate, “serious threat to regional peace and security” and a “flagrant violation” of Qatari sovereignty. This was reiterated by the UN Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres.
The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) says Congress has a moral and legal obligation to stop the mass killing of Palestinians in Gaza after the UN Commission of Inquiry’s report that concluded that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza.
“The world can no longer look away. The evidence of genocide in Gaza is overwhelming, and now it has been confirmed by a United Nations investigation. The Israeli government has acted with clear intent to destroy the Palestinian population in Gaza,” the group said in a statement.
The Palestinian American congresswoman calls for action against Israel after the UN Commission of Inquiry’s report confirmed that the Israeli military is carrying out a genocide in Gaza.
In the meantime, Arab and Islamic leaders have responded with both criticism and the demand that the international community should take more decisive action.
In an emergency Arab-Islamic Summit in Doha, Arab leaders, representing over 50 Muslim nations, held a meeting to deliberate on a unified approach toward Israeli aggression.
Many leaders around the world have reacted to the UN report on genocide in Gaza.
Social Media Outrage and Public Reaction
The reaction to the report has been quite intense on social media platforms, with influential and regular users expressing their positions.
Tweets by Palestinian rights activists, as well as the Israeli government, have received a lot of attention and reflect the great polarization of the issue globally.
The results of the Commission were echoed by many social media users who demanded accountability and an immediate ceasefire.
The Commission of Inquiry also reviewed the alleged “direct targeting” of children and “systematic” acts of sexual and gender-based violence against Palestinians.
They emphasized the fact that Israel ignored an order of the International Court of Justice of March 2024, urging “all necessary and effective measures to ensure…the unhindered provision…of urgently needed basic services and humanitarian assistance to Palestinians throughout Gaza.”
“The international community cannot stay silent on the genocidal campaign launched by Israel against the Palestinian people in Gaza,” Ms. Pillay said, adding that “all States are under a legal obligation to use all means that are reasonably available to them to stop the genocide in Gaza.”
