The United Nations human rights office has expressed grave concerns that war crimes may have been committed by both Israeli forces and Palestinian armed groups during last week’s Israeli raid on Nuseirat in central Gaza. The rare daylight operation, aimed at rescuing four Israeli captives held in Gaza for over eight months, left at least 274 Palestinians dead, according to health officials in the besieged territory.
Jeremy Laurence, a spokesman for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Turk, stated that the office is “profoundly shocked” by the devastating impact of the Israeli assault on civilians in the densely populated area.
“How the raid was conducted seriously calls into question whether the principles of distinction, proportionality, and precaution – as set out under the laws of war – were respected by the Israeli forces,”
Laurence said.
However, the UN rights office also condemned the actions of Palestinian armed groups, expressing deep distress over their continued practice of holding many hostages, most of them civilians, which is prohibited under international humanitarian law. Laurence emphasized that by holding hostages in densely populated areas, these groups are putting the lives of Palestinian civilians, as well as the hostages themselves, at heightened risk.
The Israeli mission to the UN in Geneva responded by accusing Turk of “finally realizing that Hamas uses Palestinians as human shields.” Still, it criticized him for “slandering Israel” instead of taking a clear stance against this strategy. The mission asserted that those who continue to shield Hamas terrorists, including Turk’s office, are “complicit in the suffering of Palestinians and Israelis alike.”
In the wake of the deadly raid, more than 600 Palestinians were injured, including children and women, overwhelming hospitals in the besieged enclave, which were already operating with limited supplies.
The escalation prompted the UN Security Council to pass a resolution endorsing a US-backed ceasefire proposal. Turk welcomed the move and urged all parties to ensure the “unfettered flow of humanitarian aid.”
While Hamas endorsed the UN resolution, stating its readiness to cooperate with mediators for indirect negotiations on its implementation, the ceasefire efforts have yet to yield tangible results. The conflict has claimed at least 37,164 Palestinian lives and left 84,832 injured since its inception on October 7, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza.
