UN report says Israel’s claims that Gaza hospitals are used for military purposes by Palestinian armed groups are ‘vague’ amid continued Israeli attacks on health facilities protected by the international law.
The report – released Tuesday by the UN human rights office – says Israeli strikes targeting hospitals and surrounding areas in the Gaza Strip have pushed the territory’s health system “to the brink of collapse total, with a catastrophic effect on Palestinian access to health and medical care.” “.
The 23-page report covers the period from October 7, 2023 to June 30, 2024.
During this period, at least 136 attacks took place against 27 hospitals and 12 other medical facilities, causing significant casualties among doctors, nurses and other civilians, while causing significant damage, or even the complete destruction of civilian infrastructure.
“A death trap”
The report highlights that international humanitarian law explicitly protects medical personnel and hospitals as long as they do not engage in or are used to commit acts harmful to the enemy outside of their humanitarian function.
“So far, insufficient information has been made public to support these allegations, which have remained vague and general and, in some cases, appear to be contradicted by publicly available information,” the report said. UN.
The deliberate destruction of health facilities “could constitute a form of collective punishment, which would also constitute a war crime,” he adds.
“The only sanctuary where Palestinians should have felt safe has in fact become a death trap,” said UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk. “The protection of hospitals during war is paramount and must be respected by all parties at all times. »
Israel has intensified its attacks on the besieged Kamal Adwan hospital in northern Gaza in recent days, arresting its director.
The World Health Organization said the remaining 15 critical patients, 50 caregivers and 20 health workers at Kamal Adwan Hospital were transferred Friday to the nearby Indonesian hospital, which it described as “destroyed and not functional “.
Hamas rejected Israel’s claim that its members had operated from the hospital throughout the 15-month war in Gaza, saying no fighters were present there.
Former Israeli diplomat Alon Pinkas told Tel Aviv Tribune that even if his country provided evidence to support claims that Hamas was using medical facilities for military operations, it would not justify an attack on hospitals.
“There’s a disconnect between the headlines in the newspapers … and the failure to present evidence to support that,” he said.
While the Israeli military said more than 250 Hamas fighters had been arrested at Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza, Pinkas noted that even if this is true, it “still does not justify rendering the “hospital inoperable”.
Transparent investigation
The report calls for credible and independent investigations into attacks on health facilities, highlighting the “limitations” of Israel’s justice system in responding to the actions of its armed forces.
“It is essential that there are independent, thorough and transparent investigations into all of these incidents, and that there is full accountability for all violations of international humanitarian and human rights law that have taken place” , Turk said.
He also insisted that “all medical workers arbitrarily detained must be immediately released.”
“It must also be a priority for Israel, as the occupying power, to ensure and facilitate access to adequate health care for the Palestinian population,” Turk said.
Israel’s war on Gaza has killed more than 45,500 people in the besieged territory, most of them civilians, according to the Health Ministry.
