UN investigation reveals that both Israel and Palestinian militant organizations have engaged in war crimes since October 7.
On Wednesday,gross reports were published, chronicling events up until the end of 2023. They depict a tumultuous situation where both sides habitually violated international law in a calamitous war that has raged for over eight months and triggered worldwide divisiveness and soaring tensions in the Middle East.
The United Nations Commission of Inquiry's reports begin on October 7, the day Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups unleashed a wave of murder and kidnapping in southern Israel, resulting in more than 1,200 deaths, mostly civilians, and close to 250 hostages.
Crimes alleged by the commission that day include deliberately targeting civilians, willful killings, torture, inhumane or degrading treatment, assaults on personal dignity, and abduction, including children.
These massacres prompted Israel to declare war on Hamas and launch an offensive on Gaza, which left the highly populated enclave in ruins and claimed roughly 37,000 lives, according to Gaza health authorities.
During the first 2.5 months of the conflict, Israel was accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity—the latter defined as a wide-scale, methodical attack on civilians. Alleged Israeli war crimes include starvation, arbitrary detention, and injuring or killing "tens of thousands of children."
Both Israel and Hamas were implicated in sexual violence and torture, as well as indiscriminately attacking civilians, according to the 200-page document.
The commission based its findings on interviews with victims and witnesses, Internet sources, open-source material, over 600 submissions, satellite imagery, forensic medical reports, and media coverage, including various CNN investigations.
CNN is attempting to obtain comments from the Israeli government and Hamas. Israel previously declared it would not collaborate with the investigation.
These allegations follow claims by other global organizations.
The International Criminal Court recently announced its intention to issue arrest warrants for several top Hamas and Israeli officials, including Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity.
At the time, Hamas and Israel rebuke the charges––Hamas calling it a ploy to “generate equivalence between victims and aggressors,” and Netanyahu labeling it a “political travesty.”
In February, the Israeli military disputed accusations by UN experts of human rights abuses against Palestinian girls and women in Gaza and the West Bank, characterizing the claims as "base and unfounded."
October 7 Attacks
The report discusses Hamas' activities during the October 7 attacks, which it described as "unparalleled in scale in Israel's contemporary history, evoking memories of past persecution not just for Israeli Jews, but for Jewish communities globally."
Hamas militants seized hostages without regard for age or gender, injuring, killing, and exhibiting some of them, the report said. In particular, they focused on women, whose bodies were used as triumphant symbols by male aggressors, appearing in public spaces or online.
The commission said it had evidence of sexual assaults carried out by Palestinian armed groups in numerous locations in southern Israel on October 7.
However, the report's authors were unable to independently authenticate testimonies of rape gathered by journalists and Israeli police because of a lack of access to the victims or crime scenes, and due to Israeli impediments to their investigations.
The report's authors paid special attention to the toll on Israeli children, many of whom witnessed their family members' murders and were targeted for abduction.
Israeli Forces Inflicting 'Maximum Damage'
In their assault on Hamas, Israeli forces attempted to inflict "maximum damage" without taking necessary precautions, leading to an alarming death toll in Gaza and devastating injuries, along with the demolition of civilian infrastructure, according to the report.
The commission stated that the deliberate use of potent weaponry by Israeli security forces in densely populated regions constitutes an intentional and direct attack on the civilian population, particularly affecting women and children.
It also cited two other CNN investigations that found Israeli forces intentionally killed civilians who posed no threat, frequently near evacuation routes and in designated safe zones.
The blockade of Gaza constitutes a "collective punishment against the civilian population," according to the UN report, which accused Israel of withholding critical goods such as water, food, electricity, fuel, and humanitarian aid for "strategic and political gains."
The investigation findings revealed the incendiary language employed by top Israeli leaders, including the president and prime minister, which the UN commission declared as incitement and potentially constitutes other grave criminal offenses.
Certain supporters of Israel within the government made repulsive statements, such as advocating for violence against Palestinians, the demolition of the Gaza Strip, vengeance, reprisals, claiming there are no innocent civilians in Gaza, planning new Israeli settlements on the remains of the Gaza Strip, and urging the removal of Palestinians from Gaza to third countries. These comments were not attributed to specific individuals.
The most extreme remarks in the fragmented Israeli cabinet surfaced from far-right officials, including National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich. Other cabinet members, like Benny Gantz and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, often rebuked their fellow colleagues.
The commission, established in 2021 by the United Nations Human Rights Council after a 10-day war resulting in over 200 deaths in both Israel and Gaza, experienced obstructions from Israel during their investigation. The authorities denied medical professionals and other employees of the opportunity to communicate with investigators and ignored requests for details. The commission requested information from the Palestinian Authority, which governs the West Bank, and received "extensive comments" from them.
The report didn't mention if the commission contacted Hamas, Gaza's leadership, or not.
In December 2021, the United Nations' Human Rights Council was classified as "morally distorted" and antisemitic by Israel's National Ambassador to the UN, Gilad Erdan. He viewed the investigation as a blatantly biased act against Israel itself. Erdan asserted that Israel would not cooperate in the proceedings.
The relationship between the United Nations and Israel has deteriorated to an unprecedented level over recent months. Senior UN officials have been highly critical of Israel's tactics in Gaza.
The United Nations Security Council, which Israel is not a part of, attempted for many months following the clash on October 7th to pass a resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire. The US, Israel's closest ally and primary weapons supplier, consistently applied its veto power to deter this action until it abstained in March, enabling the resolution's passage. Israel vehemently opposed the resolution, calling it a fabrication.
Last month, a vote at the United Nations General Assembly garnered tremendous international support for an independent Palestinian state. Israel and the US remained outliers, asserting that a Palestinian state must be established through negotiations.
Another critical point of contention surrounds UNRWA, the United Nations agency overseeing Palestinian refugees, which assists in feeding and housing hundreds of thousands of Palestinian refugees.
Israeli leaders have long objected to UNRWA, accusing it of channeling funds to Hamas and employing Hamas members within its ranks. At least a dozen nations withheld financial contributions to the agency following Israel's accusation that 12 respective UNRWA staffers were involved in the terrorist attacks on October 7th. However, most nations have resumed their support.
Earlier this year, UNRWA alleged that Israel detained, tortured, and compelled some of its staffers into making false admissions about the alleged involvement of the agency with Hamas.
In recent months, UNRWA has suffered threats, harassment, and violence from Israelis. The East Jerusalem headquarters experienced a fire attack while staff members were still present.
CNN has yet to verify the allegations from either Israel or UNRWA.
In their report on Wednesday, the commission called for an immediate ceasefire, the liberation of hostages, the cessation of Israeli sexual abuse against Palestinians, and opened the way for further investigations.
"It is critical that all those responsible for criminal acts be held accountable," emphasized Navi Pillay, chair of the commission.
"The only method to prevent recurrent cycles of violence, including aggression and reprisals by both parties, is to enforce unyielding adherence to international law."
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The tumultuous situation in the Middle East, resulting from the conflict between Israel and Palestinian militant organizations, has sparked worldwide divisiveness and soaring tensions. (from the third sentence)
The United Nations Commission of Inquiry's investigation into the conflict in the Middle East has received global attention, as alleged war crimes and human rights abuses have been reported by various organizations. (from the last sentence before the image)
