UN committee: Israel war in Gaza ‘consistent with genocide’

Israel’s war in Gaza is consistent with the characteristics of genocide, a special UN committee said, pointing to “mass civilian casualties and life-threatening conditions intentionally imposed on Palestinians” since October 7 last year.

The committee said Israel’s siege, blocking of aid, and targeted attacks and killing of civilians, despite UN and ICJ orders, was “intentionally causing death, starvation and serious injury”.

Israel’s warfare practices in Gaza “are consistent with the characteristics of genocide”, the committee said in the first use of the word by the UN in the context of the current war in Gaza. Israel, it said, was “using starvation as a method of war and inflicting collective punishment on the Palestinian population”.