Amnesty International accuses Israel of committing genocide in the Gaza Strip, Israel responds: Baseless lies from an anti-Israel organization

Amnesty International today denounced a "live broadcast genocide" being carried out by Israel in the Gaza Strip, where the war and blockade of humanitarian aid have driven the population to a state of despair.

Israel immediately rejected this statement as "baseless lies" from a "radical anti-Israel organization."

The UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) said that Israel's refusal to allow humanitarian aid into the besieged Palestinian enclave is "silently killing," mainly children and the sick.

On March 2, a few days after the end of a ceasefire and the resumption of the offensive in Gaza in response to Hamas' massive attack on October 7, 2023, Israel completely stopped the entry of vital aid to the 2.4 million residents who are facing an unprecedented humanitarian crisis.

"States are watching as Israel massacres entire families, generation after generation"

After the "horrific crimes" committed by Hamas over 18 months ago, "the world is watching a genocide broadcast live on its screens," writes Amnesty International Secretary General Agnès Callamard in the foreword to the international human rights organization's annual report, published today.

“States are watching, as if they were powerless, as Israel kills thousands of Palestinians, massacres entire families for generations, and destroys homes, livelihoods, hospitals, and schools,” she adds.

In the chapter of the report dedicated to the Middle East, Amnesty International repeats the accusation of "genocide", first made in late 2024 and which has been categorically denied by the Israeli authorities.

The report specifically mentions “murders,” causing “serious harm to the physical and mental integrity of civilians,” “forced deportations” and “enforced disappearances,” as well as “deliberate imposition of living conditions with the aim of causing the disappearance of people.”

"The blockade of Gaza is killing in silence," UNRWA spokeswoman Juliette Touma said during a media briefing online.

“The children of Gaza are sleeping hungry. The sick and wounded cannot receive medical treatment due to shortages (…) in hospitals,” she said. “Hunger and despair are spreading while humanitarian aid is being used as a weapon. Gaza has become a place of despair.”

The war erupted after unprecedented Hamas attacks on Israel on October 7, 2023, which caused the deaths of 1,218 Israelis, mostly civilians, according to an Agence France-Presse tally based on official Israeli data.

The same day, 251 people were kidnapped, of whom 58 are still being held in Gaza and 34 are dead, according to the Israeli military. “We will bring them back,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reiterated in a speech today.

Israel's military response, which has vowed to eliminate Hamas, has since killed at least 52,365 people in Gaza, mostly civilians, according to the Hamas Health Ministry in the enclave - data considered reliable by the UN.

Today, the Palestinian Civil Defense service also reported seven deaths from Israeli attacks, four of them from the bombing of a tent for displaced people in Khan Yunis (south).

"What I want is to put a pillow under my head and be able to sleep," he told French news agency Widnad Fojo with tears in his eyes, mourning the loss of his family members.

The Amnesty report also notes that 1.9 million Palestinians – nearly 90% of Gaza's population – have been displaced since the start of the war and accuses Israel of "deliberately causing an unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe."

"Gaza is a test for international justice, a test for our humanity," Hiba Morayef, the organization's representative for the Middle East and North Africa, declared during a press conference.

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