The United Nations Office at Geneva
Multimedia Newsroom
SCRIPT
The UN Human Rights Office today published a report saying justice must be served with respect to the grave violations of international law that have been committed in the ongoing conflict in Gaza. The report details the horrific reality that has unfolded for the people of Israel and Gaza since 7 October 2023.
“This report provides a detailed analysis of grave human rights violations over the six-month period from November 2023 to April 2024, and broadly examines the killing of civilians and breaches of international law that in many instances could amount to war crimes,” said UN Human Rights Office spokesperson Jeremy Laurence, during the launch of the launch of the report at the bi-weekly UN press briefing in Geneva, Switzerland.
“If committed as part of a widespread or systematic attack directed against a civilian population, further to a State or organizational policy, these violations may constitute crimes against humanity. And if committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group, they may also constitute genocide, the report warns,” he added.
For his part, Ajith Sunghay, the head of the UN Human Rights Office in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, speaking from Amman, Jordan, said: “Gaza is now a rubble-strewn landscape.”
“Within this dystopia of destruction and devastation, those alive are left injured, displaced and starving. Women, men, children do not have access to adequate water, food or healthcare. People are left in cramped, unsanitary conditions, ridden with illness and disease. Women are left without access to basic hygiene and health needs. Children are separated from their parents,” he added.
“We have been verifying the personal details of those killed in Gaza by strikes, shelling and other conduct of hostilities. Of those fatalities, we have so far found close to 70 per cent to be children and women, indicating a systematic violation of the fundamental principles of international humanitarian law, including distinction and proportionality,” he went on to say.
“Given the pattern of strikes throughout Gaza, and the fact they have not only killed and injured so many people, but also destroyed fundamental social structures and support networks of Palestinians in Gaza, they raise concerns that Israeli forces have intentionally attacked the very basic fabric of Palestinian society; have decimated the cohesion of Palestinian communities within Gaza,” he said.
ENDS
For more information and media requests, please contact:
Ravina Shamdasani - + 41 22 917 9169 / ravina.shamdasani@un.org or
Jeremy Laurence - +41 22 917 9383 / jeremy.laurence@un.org or
Seif Magango: - +41 79 752 0488 / seif.magango@un.org
Tag and share
Twitter @UNHumanRights
Facebook unitednationshumanrights
Instagram @unitednationshumanrights
STORY: UN Human Rights Spokesperson Jeremy Laurence & Ajith Sunghay, Head of UN Human Rights Office in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, on Gaza
TRT: SOURCE: OHCHR
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: English/NATS
ASPECT RATIO: 16:9
DATELINE: 8 NOVEMBER 2024
GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
SHOTLIST
- Exterior shot : Palais des Nations
- Cutaway : Briefing room
- SOUNDBITE (English)—Jeremy Laurence, Spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR): “This report provides a detailed analysis of grave human rights violations over the six-month period from November 2023 to April 2024, and broadly examines the killing of civilians and breaches of international law, that in many instances could amount to war crimes.”
- SOUNDBITE (English)—Jeremy Laurence, Spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR): “If committed as part of a widespread or systematic attack directed against a civilian population, further to a State or organizational policy, these violations may constitute crimes against humanity. And if committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group, they may also constitute genocide, the report warns.”
- Cutaway : Briefing room
- SOUNDBITE (English)—Jeremy Laurence, Spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR): “States have an obligations to act to prevent atrocity crimes, and we urge them to support the work of accountability mechanisms, including the International Criminal Court, in relation to the current conflict; to exercise universal jurisdiction to investigate and try crimes under international law in national courts, consistent with international standards; and to comply with extradition requests pertaining to suspects of such crimes to countries where they would receive a fair trial.”
- Cutaway : Briefing room
- SOUNDBITE (English)—Ajith Sunghay, Head of UN Human Rights Office for Occupied Palestinian Territory: “Gaza is now a rubble-strewn landscape.”
- Cutaway : Briefing room
- SOUNDBITE (English)—Ajith Sunghay, Head of UN Human Rights Office for Occupied Palestinian Territory: “Within this dystopia of destruction and devastation, those alive are left injured, displaced and starving. Women, men, children do not have access to adequate water, food or healthcare. People are left in cramped, unsanitary conditions, ridden with illness and disease. Women are left without access to basic hygiene and health needs. Children are separated from their parents.”
- Cutaway : Briefing room
- SOUNDBITE (English)—Ajith Sunghay, Head of UN Human Rights Office for Occupied Palestinian Territory: “We have been verifying the personal details of those killed in Gaza by strikes, shelling and other conduct of hostilities. Of those fatalities, we have so far found close to 70 per cent to be children and women, indicating a systematic violation of the fundamental principles of international humanitarian law, including distinction and proportionality.”
- Cutaway : Briefing room
- SOUNDBITE (English)—Ajith Sunghay, Head of UN Human Rights Office for Occupied Palestinian Territory: “Given the pattern of strikes throughout Gaza, and the fact they have not only killed and injured so many people, but also destroyed fundamental social structures and support networks of Palestinians in Gaza, they raise concerns that Israeli forces have intentionally attacked the very basic fabric of Palestinian society; have decimated the cohesion of Palestinian communities within Gaza.”
Similar Stories
1
1
1
Edited News | IOM , UNHCR
Aid teams working to help millions of people uprooted by the ongoing war in Sudan appealed on Friday for more international assistance amid desperate funding shortages, empty warehouses and overwhelming needs.
1
1
1
Edited News | UNICEF
Ukraine has sustained almost 2,000 attacks on education since the full-scale Russian invasion in 2022, with some 270 this year alone, the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) said on Tuesday.
1
1
1
Edited News | UNHCR
More than 280,000 people have now been displaced by fighting in Yemen and many vulnerable people are unable to access lifesaving relief because it is too dangerous to do so, the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) said on Friday.
1
1
1
Edited News | UN
Tour guides at UN Geneva turned heads at the Palace of Nations on Thursday as they unveiled stylish new uniforms, designed in partnership with leading Italian sustainable fashion designers and manufacturers.
1
1
1
Edited News | OCHA , UNICEF , WFP
Aid agencies warned on Friday of the fast-developing humanitarian emergency inside Taiz City in Yemen, which has been encircled by de facto Houthi forces fighting government troops along the country’s west coast.
2
17
1
2
Edited News , Press Conferences , Images | OCHA , WMO
Two UN agencies teamed up on Wednesday to issue an appeal for immediate assistance to help communities already being impacted by the strongest El Niño on record.
3
16
2
2
Edited News , B-roll , Conferences , Images | UNITED NATIONS , UNOG
Sixth Consultative Meeting on Enhancing Coordination of Peace Initiatives and Efforts for Sudan
1
1
1
Edited News | UNICEF , WHO , UNHCR
Yemen war continues to force families from homes amid hunger and disease
More than 250,000 people have now fled renewed fighting in Yemen, the UN said on Tuesday, citing particular concern for those sheltering in the southwestern city of Taiz and the wider governorate, where access is “essentially blocked”.
1
1
1
Edited News | UNICEF
A little over one year since a ceasefire agreement was announced between Hamas fighters and Israel, more than 340 children have been reported killed and hundreds more injured, the UN Children’s Fund, UNICEF, said on Friday.
1
1
1
Edited News | UNICEF , IFRC
Six weeks after Nepal’s deadly flooding disaster, communities are still struggling to rebuild their lives, but they will need sustained help as global warming increases the risk of another Himalayan catastrophe, the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) said on Friday.
1
1
1
Edited News | WHO
In suspected Russia plague death, testing and monitoring underway – WHO
The death of a lab worker in Russia’s Siberia region has sparked concerns about plague being the cause, the UN World Health Organization (WHO) said on Tuesday, adding that it was following the situation closely.
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
UN Human Rights Chief Volker Türk on Friday provided and oral update to the 63rd session of the Human rights Council on Ukraine.