[13]
‘ The death toll in Gaza since October 7 is approaching 40,000 people, according to Gaza’s Ministry of Health. Nearly 90,000 more have been injured, and struggle to receive adequate healthcare as Israeli forces have damaged or destroyed hospitals, targeted healthcare and aid workers, and blocked imports of medical goods and evacuations of patients.”
HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH
LETTER TO THE EU AND EU FOREIGN MINISTERS
ON ISRAEL AND PALESTINE
16 JULY 2024
Dear President von der Leyen,
Dear High Representative Borrell,
Dear Foreign Ministers of the EU member states,
We write to you as the hostilities in Israel and Palestine have been raging for over nine months, and amid concrete risks of spillovers that could bring further suffering and destruction to the region. You have swiftly and rightly denounced and acted upon Palestinian armed groups’ war crimes, including the attacks in Israel that led to the killing of over 1,100 people on October 7, the taking of hostages, and indiscriminate rocket attacks. Regrettably, you have yet to collectively acknowledge, denounce, and adopt appropriate measures to address the Israeli authorities’ war crimes and other international humanitarian law (IHL) violations, some of which have led to the unfolding humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza.
The death toll in Gaza since October 7 is approaching 40,000 people, according to Gaza’s Ministry of Health. Nearly 90,000 more have been injured, and struggle to receive adequate healthcare as Israeli forces have damaged or destroyed hospitals, targeted healthcare and aid workers, and blocked imports of medical goods and evacuations of patients.
About 90% of the population of the Gaza Strip have been displaced, many of them repeatedly. While Israel has stated that temporary evacuation is reversible, UN officials and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) have expressed their concerns that the evacuation orders may violate IHL and risk the war crime of forced displacement, given the extensive destruction of homes and civilian infrastructure.
People in Gaza are being deliberately starved and collectively punished as Israeli authorities are using starvation as a method of warfare, severely and arbitrarily restricting food, water, fuel, electricity, and humanitarian access. There is mounting evidence that the actions of the Israeli army are rendering large parts of the Strip unlivable, and massive reconstruction efforts will be required to enable Palestinians to return to their previous lives.
These developments are in flagrant violation of Israel’s obligations as an occupying power under IHL and of three binding rulings by the International Court of Justice (ICJ), issued in the case brought by South Africa against Israel for alleged violations of the UN Genocide Convention.
On May 20, the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) requested arrest warrants against three Hamas leaders and two senior Israeli officials, on various counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity. The request is pending before the court’s judges. We welcome the clear statements by the High Representative and some EU governments highlighting the need to respect the court’s decisions and independence. At the same time, we regret that other EU member states spoke out against the prosecutor’s request. Member states should express support for the ICC’s critical role to deliver justice for victims in the context of the investigation in Palestine and across the court’s docket, regardless of where the crimes are committed and by whom.
We recall the June 2023 Council conclusions on the ICC, and the supportive role the EU has collectively played for the court and its activities, including most recently in the context of the ICC’s investigation in Ukraine and following the arrest warrants issued against Russia’s President Vladimir Putin and other Russian high-level officials. The same level of support should be provided to all situations under investigation by the ICC, including Palestine. As outlined in more detail below, the EU and its member states should consistently support the ICC’s work, respect the court’s independence and abide by its decisions, and push back against efforts to undermine its independence and mandate.
In the occupied West Bank, Palestinians continue to live the harsh, daily reality of occupation, apartheid and persecution. There is a growing consensus among legal experts that Israeli authorities are committing the crime of apartheid, a conclusion reached by Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, Israeli and Palestinian NGOs, UN experts, academics, governments, former foreign ministers of EU member states and many others.
In the West Bank, since October 7, more than 520 Palestinians have been killed, 5,400 injured, and 2,400 displaced by military operations including home demolitions, with more than 1,200 displaced by settler-led violence. Israeli forces either actively take part in settler attacks or fail to protect Palestinians, as documented in an April report by Human Rights Watch. Fourteen Israelis, including nine members of Israeli forces and five settlers, were killed by Palestinians and at least 105 Israelis, including about 90 members of Israeli forces, were injured in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem. The EU and member states continue to denounce violence, mass demolitions and expansion of settlements in the West Bank, but their calls continue to be ignored by Israeli authorities. The two rounds of designations of a total of nine violent settlers and five entities under the EU’s global human rights sanctions regime are steps in the right direction, but many more should follow, including against Israeli officials enabling and supporting violence and dispossession and depriving people of their basic rights
Thousands of Palestinians, including scores of women and children, are arbitrarily detained by Israeli authorities, often in reportedly horrendous conditions. According to human rights experts and groups, including Israeli NGOs, Palestinians are routinely subject to torture and other inhuman and degrading treatment, including sexual violence. Israel’s national security minister, Itamar Ben Gvir, publicly brags about his efforts to worsen their detention conditions, including implementing the death penalty. We welcome the European Council’s call on Israeli authorities to grant the ICRC access to places of detention, and urge persuasive efforts to ensure that call is urgently heeded. Israeli authorities also hold 3,379 Palestinians in administrative detention, without charge or trial based on secret information, as of July 1, according to Israeli Prison Services figures. This figure marks a three-decade high, according to the Israeli human rights group HaMoked.
Finally, we are increasingly concerned about the military escalation across the Israel-Lebanon border. Human Rights Watch has documented Israel’s widespread use of airburst white phosphorus munitions in populated areas in south Lebanon, which is unlawful under IHL, in addition to unlawful attacks on aid workers and apparently indiscriminate and deliberate attacks on civilians. Since October 2023, the Israeli military has killed more than 490 people in Lebanon, including 95 civilians, according to media reports, and Hezbollah has killed at least 15 soldiers and 11 civilians in north Israel. The risks of unlawful attacks and of destruction of civilian infrastructure comparable to those in Gaza are extremely concrete, and the EU should spare no effort to ensure compliance with IHL and prevent further humanitarian catastrophes.
We welcome the EU’s repeated, unequivocal condemnation of the crimes committed during the October 7 attacks – which Human Rights Watch is reporting on – and its continued call for the unconditional release of civilian hostages held by Palestinian armed groups, condemnation of attacks by Palestinian armed groups against Israel, and adoption of concrete measures, including targeted sanctions, against those responsible for ongoing abuses.
At the same time, we are dismayed at the persistent efforts by some member states to prevent the adoption of EU positions that acknowledge and condemn the Israeli authorities’ war crimes, other IHL violations, and human rights abuses in Gaza, and the adoption of appropriate and persuasive EU measures to address them, such as targeted sanctions, suspension of arms transfers, and a review and possible suspension of the EU-Israel Association Agreement.
The EU faces growing and well-grounded accusations of double standards, notably from governments in the so-called “Global South” and from civil society groups and human rights experts, who are calling on the EU to go beyond slogans and generic statements of concern, condemn war crimes and other IHL violations, and adopt effective and persuasive measures to address them. The double standards on Israel and Palestine are harming the EU’s reputation as a global champion of human rights and international law and are all the more concerning at a time of growing instability and attacks against the international rules-based order and human rights system, including by other global powers.
While aware of persistent, sharp divisions among EU member states, we urge you all to recognize the wider implications of the EU’s double standards, overcome differences, and adopt positions and measures rooted in human rights and IHL that adequately reflect the tragic reality on the ground, and pursue accountability for atrocity crimes being committed.
In particular, we urge you to:
- Unequivocally and publicly recognize and condemn the Israeli authorities’ war crimes, other IHL violations and rights abuses in Gaza and in the West Bank, both before and since October 7, and demand accountability. In particular, urge the Israeli authorities to:
- Stop deliberately blocking the delivery of vital humanitarian assistance in and throughout Gaza, including items related to water, food, fuel, medicines and other items, and urgently open additional land crossings, in compliance with the ICJ rulings and with their IHL obligations as occupying power;
- Halt all unlawful attacks against civilians and civilian objects humanitarian personnel and premises, journalists, hospitals, schools and other categories protected under IHL;
- End any abuse, including torture and other inhuman and degrading treatment, against Palestinian detainees, immediately grant the ICRC and UN humanitarian and human rights bodies unfettered access to all places of detention, and ensure that all detainees’ rights are fully respected, including fair trial guarantees, and that those responsible for abuses are held to account;
- Take appropriate and long-overdue measures, such as targeted sanctions, the suspension of arms transfers, and a review of the EU-Israel Association Agreement with a view to possibly suspend it in whole or in part, to meaningfully press Israeli authorities to halt their crimes and comply with their IHL and human rights obligations;
- Continue to call for and support efforts towards the release of hostages held by Palestinian armed groups, and sustain pressure on Palestinian armed groups to end unlawful indiscriminate attacks on Israeli civilians and civilian infrastructure;
- Step up political and financial support for UNRWA, the ICRC and other humanitarian actors that continue to provide life-saving aid throughout Gaza and in the region, often at great risk;
- Unequivocally express support for the role of the International Criminal Court in the situation of Palestine and across the court’s docket, and make clear that EU member states will abide by the court’s decisions, including by fulfilling their arrest obligations and avoiding non-essential contacts with those sought by the ICC. Publicly condemn threats and attacks against the ICC, its officials and those cooperating with it, and be prepared to use concrete tools, such as the EU blocking statute or other mechanisms, to minimize the impact of potential sanctions or other measures aimed at thwarting the work of the court;
- Support other efforts towards accountability for the serious crimes committed by all parties to the conflict, including calling for unfettered access for UN and other independent monitors, and prosecuting those responsible under the principle of universal jurisdiction;
- Ban trade with illegal settlements, as it risks complicity in IHL violations and entrenches the human rights abuses that stem from settlements, including violence and killings, land confiscation, natural resource exploitation, and displacement of and discrimination against the Palestinian population;
- Address the root-causes of recurring gross human rights abuses and atrocity crimes in Israel and Palestine, including persistent impunity, prolonged occupation, the crimes against humanity of apartheid and persecution, unlawful demolitions and the expansion of illegal settlements, and ensure that accountability and reparation for abuses are part of any peace process and negotiated solution the EU may be pursuing.
As discussions on these pressing matters continue among EU governments and institutions and a new meeting of the EU-Israel Association Council is considered, we once again encourage each individual EU member state not to hide behind consensus and to issue statements, support accountability and humanitarian actors, and adopt measures in line with the recommendations listed above whenever possible.
We stand ready to discuss these issues with you any time.
Yours sincerely,
Bruno Stagno Ugarte
Chief Advocacy Officer, Human Rights Watch
”As of 17 July 2024, over 40,000 people (39,145 Palestinian[1] and 1,478 Israeli[13]) have been reported as killed in the Israel–Hamas war, including 108 journalists (103 Palestinian, 2 Israeli and 3 Lebanese)[14] and over 224 humanitarian aid workers, including 179 employees of UNRWA.[15]”
WIKIPEDIA
CASUALTIES OF THE ISRAEL-HAMAS WAR
According to the Ministry of Health in Gaza, as of 15 July, at least 38,664 Palestinians have been reportedly killed in the Gaza Strip since 7 October. Another 89,097 Palestinians have been reportedly injured. ”
UNWRAUNWRA SITUATION REPORT #122 ON THE SITUATION IN THE GAZA STRIPAND THE WEST BANK, INCLUDING EAST JERUSALEM19 JULY 2024
Friday, July 19, 2024
All information from 15–17 July 2024, valid as of 17 July 2024 at 22:30
Days 283-285 of Hostilities
Download UNRWA multimedia resources here
Key Points
The Gaza Strip
- Ongoing strikes by Israeli Security Forces (ISF) continue, with aerial, land and maritime bombardment across the Gaza Strip. These result in civilian casualties, displacement and the destruction of residential structures and civilian infrastructure. The ISF ground offensive continues to expand, particularly in the North and Gaza City, forcing people to be further displaced.
- As of 17 July, the total number of UNRWA colleagues killed since 7 October is 197.
- The World Health Organization (WHO) has recorded more than 1,000 attacks on healthcare facilities in the occupied Palestinian territory since 7 October 2023. The Palestinian health system continues to be severely overstretched. According to WHO, in the Gaza Strip, only 1,400 hospital beds are currently operational for a population of approximately 2.1 million people. Many of these hospital beds are already occupied/filled. According to the ICRC1, the 60-bed Red Cross Field Hospital in Rafah, southern Gaza, is nearly at full capacity following repeated mass casualty events.
- The Commissioner General of UNRWA put out a statement on the X platform (formerly known as Twitter) that attacks on schools in Gaza have become an almost daily occurrence with at least eight schools hit in the last 10 days (9-16 July), including six UNRWA schools; “the war continues to rob the girls and boys in Gaza of their childhood and education” he said .
- According to UNICEF2, as of May 2024, 60 per cent of WASH facilities have been destroyed or severely damaged. This increases water shortages and limits access to sanitation, increasing the risk of waterborne diseases, while approximately 30 per cent of hospitals remain partially functional, with the remainder out of service.
- According to the UN, up to 1.9 million people (or nine in ten people) across the Gaza Strip are internally displaced, including people who have been repeatedly displaced (some up to 10 times).
- Several challenges stand in the way of collecting much needed humanitarian supplies from the Karem Abu Salem (Kerem Shalom) crossing point in southern Gaza. One of the factors is the deteriorating law and order, other factors are insecurity, damaged infrastructure, fuel shortages and restricted access.
- The latest information on supplies entering Gaza can be found below:
Gaza Supplies and Dispatch Tracking | UNRWA
[1] Gaza: Repeated mass casualty events put hospitals under severe strain – occupied Palestinian territory | ReliefWeb
The West Bank, including East Jerusalem
The West Bank, including East Jerusalem update is now once a week.
- According to OCHA, between 7 October 2023 and 15 July 2024, 554 Palestinians, including 131 children, were killed in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem.
Overall Situation
The Gaza Strip
- According to the Ministry of Health in Gaza, as of 15 July, at least 38,664 Palestinians have been reportedly killed in the Gaza Strip since 7 October. Another 89,097 Palestinians have been reportedly injured.
Humanitarian Access, Protection of Civilians
The Gaza Strip
- UNRWA is working to verify the details of incidents reportedly affecting UNRWA premises. Further information will be provided once it becomes available.
- Three incidents have been reported impacting UNRWA installations and internally displaced people (IDPs) sheltering there. While verification of details and casualty figures is ongoing, initial reports indicate:
- [LATE REPORT] On 13 July 2024 (estimated date), ISF reportedly carried out a controlled detonation of a school in Rafah. The school was totally destroyed.
- On 15 July 2024, ISF reportedly launched a missile at an UNRWA school in Gaza City, which was being used as a shelter. Even though the missile did not explode, its impact killed two and injured 10 IDPs sheltering at the school. The missile penetrated the roof of the school building and caused significant damage to three classrooms in the school.
- On 16 July 2024, ISF reportedly fired a missile at an UNRWA school in the Middle Area, killing 20 IDPs sheltering in the school and injuring 50.
- 461* incidents impacting UNRWA premises and the people inside them have been reported since the beginning of the war (some with multiple incidents impacting the same location), including at least 74 incidents of military use and/or interference at UNRWA premises. 189 different UNRWA installations have been impacted by munitions or subjected to armed actor interference through these incidents.
- UNRWA estimates that in total at least 561* internally displaced people (IDPs) sheltering in UNRWA shelters have been killed and at least another 1,768* injured since the start of the war. UNRWA continues to verify the number of casualties caused by incidents that impacted its installations, and notes that these figures do not include some reported casualties where the number of injuries could not be determined.
* Numbers continue to be subject to change once further verifications have been conducted.
UNRWA Response
The Gaza Strip
Health
- As of 11 July, 83 medical points and ten (out of 261) UNRWA health centres were operational. These health centres provide primary health care, including outpatient services, non-communicable disease care, medications, vaccination, antenatal and postnatal health care and dressing for the injured.
- On 11 July, almost 1,100 UNRWA health staff continued to work in operational health centres and medical points across the Gaza Strip, providing 16,317 medical consultations.
- As of 11 July, UNRWA provided mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS) services in the Middle and Khan Younis areas with teams of psychiatrists and supervisors to assist special cases referred from health centres and shelters. UNRWA teams responded to 605 cases. They responded to cases in health centres and at medical points through individual consultations, awareness sessions and support for cases of gender-based violence. The teams provided medical care for 485 post-natal and pregnant women at high risk.
- According to the Health Cluster, UNRWA remains one of the largest health actors operating in the Gaza Strip, contributing to over half of the people reached with health services. Between 7 October – 14 July, UNRWA provided over 4.7 million medical consultations in health centres and medical points across the Gaza Strip. In addition to medical consultations, UNRWA continues to provide vaccines with over 120,000 children vaccinated.
- Due to challenges in bringing health supplies into the Gaza Strip as well as challenges in retrieving health supplies and transporting them to health facilities, stock levels remain very low, with up to 60 per cent of medicines either fully depleted or available in very low quantities.
[1] Pre-conflict UNRWA had 22 health centres, following the conflict an additional temporary health centres have been established.
Psychosocial support (PSS)
- With the support of more than 300 counsellors, UNRWA continues to provide lifesaving psychosocial support (PSS) services in Gaza, including psychosocial first aid, individual and group counselling, fatigue management sessions, recreational activities, Explosive Ordnance Risk Education (EORE), and protection cash assistance, reaching children, youth and adults.
- Since the onset of the conflict, around 700,000 IDPs, including 450,000 children, have benefited from a total of 235,666 PSS sessions/activities. From 23 June–7 July 2024, a total of 61,798 IDPs, including 26,645 children, benefited from these services.
Food Security
- UNRWA continued to distribute flour in the southern governorates. To date, a total of 380,225 families (nearly 1.9 million people) have been reached, of them 367,768 families have received two rounds of flour and another 300,978 families have received three rounds.
- As part of its emergency response, UNRWA distributes food parcels in the southern governorates. UNRWA food parcels include1 flour, rice, chickpeas, lentils, cheese, hummus, and fish, and are designed to cover approximately 90 per cent of daily calorific needs. To date, nearly 1.15 million people have been reached, of whom nearly 215,000 people have received two rounds of food parcels since the war started.
- In addition to the distribution of UNRWA food parcels, the Agency distributed other food parcels on behalf of other UN organisations, reaching around 1.4 million people.
[1] Note the composition of the food parcel may change based on food item availability.
Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH)
Due to the security situation, in combination with challenges to internet connectivity, we have been unable to provide any additional updates since Sitrep 67.
Quote from Philippe Lazzarini, UNRWA Commissioner-General:
“The war robbed the girls and boys in Gaza of their childhood and education. Schools must never be used for fighting or military purposes by any party to the conflict. Schools are not a target.”
ENDS-
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