Israel’s leading rights group, B’Tselem, has issued a forceful condemnation, stating unequivocally that Israeli military operations in Gaza amount to genocide of the Palestinian population. The organisation outlines a systematic campaign of civilian targeting, enforced displacement, ethnic cleansing, lethal assaults, and intentional ruin of daily life, especially affecting women and children.

In a detailed report, B’Tselem argues that Israel’s actions extend far beyond aerial bombardment. They include deliberate policies aimed at rendering Gaza uninhabitable, resulting in mass suffering, collapse of essential services, and widespread famine. The group warns that such measures are not confined to Gaza but could escalate across other Occupied Palestinian Territories unless international pressure intervenes urgently.

Critically, B’Tselem denounces the European Union and the United States for their failure to prevent or halt these atrocities, charging that political endorsement, military assistance, and strategic silence have made them complicit in the unfolding disaster.

With more than 60,000 Palestinians killed or wounded since 7 October 2023, allegedly mostly civilians, and Gaza under a crippling siege for nearly two years, the humanitarian crisis is mounting by the day.

B’Tselem’s call is clear: an immediate, independent international investigation into war crimes and genocidal intent is essential. The organisation appeals for the International Criminal Court, UN human rights bodies, and global civil society to act now to avert further devastation, and to halt what it describes as a deliberate campaign to erase Palestinian life.