Iran (IMNA) - The report, presented by Navi Pillay, chairperson of the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, states that "Israeli authorities are responsible for war crimes, crimes against humanity, and violations of international humanitarian and human rights law."
These include "extermination, intentionally directing attacks against civilians and civilian objects, murder or willful killing, using starvation as a method of war, forcible transfer, gender persecution targeting Palestinian men and boys, sexual and gender-based violence amounting to torture, and cruel or inhuman treatment," Pillay said.
The UN commissioner said the Israeli military "forcibly transferred almost the entire population [in Gaza] into a small enclosure that is unsafe and uninhabitable" and used heavy weapons in densely populated areas in "an intentional and direct attack on the civilian population".
Widespread Destruction and Civilian Casualties
Pillay's commission found that the immense numbers of civilian casualties in Gaza, and the widespread destruction of civilian objects and infrastructure were the inevitable result of an intentional strategy to cause maximum damage.
The report also noted that the daily onslaught in Gaza must not sideline attention to a parallel wave of violence in the occupied West Bank, where more Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces or settlers since the start of the Gaza war in any other recorded period.
Impunity and Accountability
Pillay said the world faces its biggest threat of impunity for violations of international law unless perpetrators are held to account and justice is delivered for all victims.
She underscored that the large-scale surprise attack by members of Hamas and other Gaza-based resistance fighters against Israel in early October did not occur in a vacuum as it was preceded by decades of violence and retribution against Palestinians.
"Thousands of Palestinians have been detained and are being held incommunicado…," Pillay said, adding that "The enormity of this tragedy overwhelms us, and we are deeply disturbed by the immense human suffering."
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