The permanent investigative commission of the United Nations Organization (UN) on human rights violations in the Palestinian territories and Israel said it had collected and preserved “evidence of war crimes committed by all parties” since the start of the US offensive Hamas last Saturday, 7. “There is already clear evidence that war crimes may have been committed in the recent explosion of violence in Israel and Gaza, and all those who violated international law and attacked civilians must be held accountable for their crimes.” I’m alerting the commission. In addition, the United Nations also stated that the total siege of the Gaza Strip announced by the Israeli government was “prohibited” under international humanitarian law. “The imposition of sieges that endanger the lives of civilians and deprive them of vital goods is prohibited by international humanitarian law,” he said Volker Turk, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights. “Any restriction on the movement of people and goods aimed at creating a siege must be justified by military needs. Otherwise it could be a collective punishment,” the High Commissioner continued.
Türk also said he was shocked by “the reports of mass executions of civilians” and “horrible massacres” committed by Hamas. The High Commissioner also called on the group to “immediately and unconditionally release all captured civilians.” “Taking hostages is prohibited under international law,” emphasized Türk. On Monday the 12th, Israel’s Defense Minister Yoav Gallant announced a “total siege” of the Gaza Strip. “No electricity, no food, no water, no gas, everything is closed,” the minister said. A World Health Organization (WHO) called for the opening of a humanitarian corridor to the Gaza Strip. “A humanitarian corridor is needed to supply the population with vital medical supplies,” said WHO spokesman Tarik Jasarevic in Geneva. According to him, the organization is working on this with several institutional players.
*With information from AFP