The UN Has Found Israel Committed War Crimes By Targeting And Destroying Healthcare Facilities In Gaza
The UN commission released a report on Oct. 10, finding that Israel engaged in a "concerted policy" aimed at dismantling Gaza's healthcare system as part of its genocide in Gaza.
A United Nations Commission of Inquiry has found that the Israeli military committed war crimes and crimes against humanity through its actions targeting and attacking healthcare facilities in Gaza.
The UN commission released a report on Thursday, Oct. 10, finding that Israel engaged in a "concerted policy" aimed at dismantling Gaza's healthcare system as part of its genocide in Gaza.
The report said Israeli forces have deliberately killed, detained and tortured medical personnel and targeted medical vehicles while tightening its siege on Gaza and restricting permits to leave the territory for medical treatment.
It identified Israeli military actions that amount to war crimes, including willfully killing and mistreating of medical staff, as well as destroying civilian property.
Hospitals, healthcare and civilian infrastructure are protected under international humanitarian law (IHL), also known as the rules of war.
The report found that between Oct. 7, 2023, and July 30, 2024, Israel conducted 498 attacks on healthcare facilities in Gaza, killing 747 people and injuring 969 others.
The World Health Organization reported that 78% of these attacks were done through military force.
It besieged hospitals, issued evacuation orders without safe conditions and targeted medical personnel were targeted, leading to the near-total collapse of Gaza's already fragile healthcare system, severely affecting the civilian population's rights to health and life, the report said.
In fact, by July 15, 20 out of 36 hospitals in Gaza became non-functional due to attacks and the healthcare system faced collapse from severe overcrowding and lack of resources.
The commission also documented 520 attacks on healthcare facilities in the West Bank that killed 23 people and injured 100 others between Oct. 7, 2023, and July 30, 2024.
The report indicated that Israel targeted and besieged specific hospitals, such as Al-Shifa and Nasser for weeks, under the claims that Hamas was operating from inside but did not adhere to the principles of distinction and proportionality.
Under international humanitarian law, distinction means parties in an armed conflict have to differentiate between combatants and civilians, meaning civilians should never be directly targeted.
Proportionality, meanwhile, means that military forces must protect civilians in military attacks, evaluate civilian casualties before launching any attack and ensure that any harm caused to civilians is proportionate to military gain.
By ignoring the principles, the Israeli military’s targeted attacks caused excessive civilian casualties, which the report found constitute crimes against humanity, specifically the crime of extermination, as they were systematic and resulted in long-term harm to the Palestinian population.
In addition, the commission did not find credible evidence supporting claims that the hospitals were being used for military purposes at the time they were attacked.
The report also highlighted the fact children have suffered disproportionately due to the Israeli’s military’s attacks on the healthcare system, with children facing both direct harm and the consequences of the collapsed healthcare system.
One of the incidents the report investigated was the Israeli military’s killing of six-year-old girl Hind Rajab, and her extended family, as well as two Palestinian Red Crescent paramedics who were dispatched to rescue them, in Feb. 2024.
Israeli forces had shot at Hind and her family’s car with 355 bullets while they were trying to flee Gaza, and also killed the two paramedics, Yousef Zeino and Ahmed al-Madhoun, in their ambulance while they were meters away from reaching Hind.
“Israel must immediately stop its unprecedented wanton destruction of healthcare facilities in Gaza," the commission chair, Navi Pillay, said.
The Israeli foreign ministry called the report “outrageous,” claiming it misrepresents Israel’s military operations and denies Israel its right to defend itself, according to CNN.
The Commission’s report will be presented to the General Assembly’s 79th session on Oct. 30, in New York.
Israel’s genocide in Gaza has killed more than 42,227 Palestinians and injured more than 98,464 others, mostly women and children.
More On Israel's Genocide In Gaza
Kassy Cho
Sofia Hou
Cherry Mohamed
