Israel’s destruction of civilian infrastructure in Gaza violates the Geneva Conventions and quantities to a “war crime,” the U.N.’s human rights chief mentioned Thursday.
“Extensive destruction of property, not justified by military necessity and carried out unlawfully and wantonly, amounts to a grave breach of the Fourth Geneva Conventions, and a war crime,” Volker Turk informed reporters.
Turk’s feedback got here a day after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered troops to arrange to enter Gaza’s now-crowded southern metropolis of Rafah, which Israel had beforehand declared a “safe zone” and ordered Palestinians to flee too.
Last month, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) issued an interim order demanding Israel cease obstructing assist deliveries into Gaza and enhance the humanitarian scenario within the enclave, following a lawsuit by South Africa accusing Tel Aviv of committing genocide.
Israel has pounded Gaza since a cross-border assault by Palestinian group Hamas in October, which Tel Aviv mentioned killed practically 1,200 individuals.
At least 27,840 Palestinians have since been killed and 67,317 others injured within the Israeli onslaught, in accordance with native well being authorities.
About 85% of Gazans have been displaced by the Israeli offensive, whereas all of them are meals insecure, in accordance with the U.N. Hundreds of hundreds of individuals are residing with out shelter, and lower than half of assist vehicles are coming into the territory than earlier than the beginning of the battle.
Source: www.dailysabah.com