The United Nations Special Rapporteur for the Occupied Palestinian Territory, Francesca Albanese, has called for an immediate halt to arms sales to the Israeli Occupation, which has been carrying out a genocidal war against Palestinians in Gaza since October 2023.

In a strongly worded statement on Sunday, Albanese condemned the continued supply of Western-made weapons to Israeli forces, stating: “Israel must be stopped, and so should the states supplying it with weapons.” She added: “Seriously, how many children, along with their parents and grandparents, must we witness being starved, burned alive, or gathered into plastic bags after Western-manufactured bombs have shattered them?”

Despite the overwhelming human toll and warnings from the International Court of Justice to prevent acts of genocide, several Western governments, particularly the United States, continue to supply the Israeli Occupation with lethal weaponry, including 2,000-pound bunker-busting bombs.

Amnesty International has warned that ongoing arms transfers risk making these states complicit in war crimes, as Washington remains the largest provider of military support to Israeli forces.

Since the Israeli genocidal war on Gaza began on 7 October 2023, more than 52,000 Palestinians, the majority of them women and children, have been killed. The Israeli Occupation continues to defy calls from the UN Security Council for an immediate ceasefire, as the humanitarian catastrophe deepens.