Human Rights Watch: Israel Committing Genocidal Acts in Gaza

International Consensus on Gaza Actions

• ⚖️ Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, and the UN have concluded that genocidal acts are being committed by Israel in Gaza.
• ⚠️ Experts and international bodies assert that legal definitions for crimes against humanity and genocide are met based on evidence and law, not solely court determinations.
• 🌍 Organizations like Human Rights Watch analyze evidence and law to determine if crimes have been committed, finding that Israel is carrying out genocidal acts and crimes against humanity.

Duty to Prevent Genocide

• 📜 The Genocide Convention, born from WWII and the Holocaust, mandates states to take all measures to prevent genocide.
• 🤝 States with close relationships and leverage over a perpetrator state have a particularly strong obligation to act.
• 🚫 Many states are failing to act, not only by not imposing sanctions or suspending cooperation but also by continuing to provide weapons, risking complicity in atrocity crimes.

Starvation as a Weapon of War

• 🚨 Human Rights Watch has documented Israel using starvation as a weapon of war since early in the conflict.
• 💧 Despite International Court of Justice (ICJ) calls for Israel to ensure humanitarian aid, the situation has worsened, with a complete blockade in effect for over 70 days.
• 📈 Plans are emerging that could accentuate atrocity crimes, with Israeli officials making clear intentions to displace the Palestinian population and destroy infrastructure.

International Inaction and Shifting Stance

• 🇺🇸 The United States, under the Biden administration, has unqualifiedly supported Netanyahu's actions in Gaza.
• 🌍 While traditionally Israel is a critical ally, there's a broader failure within the international community, including Arab states, to hold Israel accountable.
• 💔 A turning point is emerging, unfortunately after the deaths of 15,000 Palestinian children, with a hope that states will finally take action.

Legal Definitions and Evidence

• 🏛️ Some governments, like the UK, defer to courts for international crime determinations, while many organizations and experts point to established legal definitions under treaty and customary international law.
• 🔍 Human Rights Watch and others examine evidence to determine if crimes are being committed, concluding that Israel's actions align with definitions of genocidal acts and crimes against humanity.