The use of this incendiary chemical confirms that Israeli occupying forces are involved in crimes against humanity.

On Friday, the office of United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk released a report accusing Israel of using white phosphorus on at least 24 occasions in Gaza. The use of this incendiary chemical confirms that Israeli occupation forces are involved in acts of genocide, war crimes, or crimes against humanity.

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The report, which focuses mainly on a six-month period in the conflict between November 2023 and April 2024, details six instances of incendiary weapon use in Gaza’s capital, nine in the central part of the Strip, and three in Khan Younis. Some of these incidents occurred in refugee camps.

The office led by Türk “verified an incident on December 25 in which a baby was burned by white phosphorus in a school in the Al Bureij camp,” stated the 32-page document, which includes testimonies from medical professionals in Gaza.

Although white phosphorus is not classified as a chemical weapon, its use should be prohibited under conventions that ban weaponry with “indiscriminate effects” or that causes “unnecessary suffering and excessive injuries.”

Previously, international human rights organizations had already pointed to Israel’s use of white phosphorus in Gaza, though this is one of the first United Nations documents containing such accusations since the Israeli offensive in Gaza began in October 2023.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), white phosphorus ignites instantly upon contact with oxygen, is very difficult to extinguish, and tends to stick to skin and clothing, causing “deep and severe burns, penetrating even through bones.”

The Tüsk report verified 8,119 killings in Gaza, including those of 3,588 children. It also highlights that in verified attacks on residential buildings, children were the main victims, underscoring that the demographic profile of the deceased demonstrates a complete disregard by Israeli occupation forces for avoiding civilian casualties.

While Israel’s stated priority in the conflict has been to eliminate Hamas infrastructure, the attacks have generally expanded to include all types of civilian targets, such as residential areas, which could constitute a war crime, the report insists.

In response to the Israeli military’s claim that Hamas uses numerous civilians as human shields, the report notes that there has been insufficient evidence to prove, for example, that this was the case at the repeatedly besieged and bombed Al Shifa hospital, Gaza’s main hospital before the war.

The United Nations office’s report also denounces the use of artificial intelligence (AI) to identify targets, but notes that the technology used in Gaza only allows for the distinction between male and female individuals under surveillance, without differentiating between military and civilian persons.

“It is assumed that all Palestinian men are legitimate targets, in grave violation of the principles of distinction and precaution,” the Türk report stated.

Another aspect highlighted to show the indiscriminate nature of many attacks is the high number of people from the same family who were killed: over 40 families have lost up to 30 relatives, with extreme cases such as the Al Najjar clan, which lost 138 of its members in 18 incidents.

The document also denounces human rights violations such as attacks on healthcare facilities, summary executions of Palestinians, including humanitarian workers and police officers, and the killing of at least 133 journalists, 91 of whom were verified by the UN office.

“The unprecedented level of civilian deaths and injuries is a direct result of non-compliance with the principles of international humanitarian law,” High Commissioner Türk remarked when the report was published.

teleSUR/ JF Source: EFE

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