Israel’s war conduct in Gaza ‘consistent with the characteristics of genocide,’ UN Special Committee finds

CNN — Israel’s war conduct in Gaza “is consistent with the characteristics of genocide,” including mass civilian casualties and using starvation as a weapon, according to a new United Nations Special Committee report released Thursday. “Through its siege over Gaza, obstruction of humanitarian aid, alongside targeted attacks and killing of civilians and aid workers, despite repeated UN appeals, binding orders from the International Court of Justice and resolutions of the Security Council, Israel is intentionally causing death, starvation and serious injury, using starvation as a method of war and inflicting collective punishment on the Palestinian population,” the UN committee said in a press release. “The Israeli military’s use of AI-assisted targeting, with minimal human oversight, combined with heavy bombs, underscores Israel’s disregard of its obligation to distinguish between civilians and combatants and take adequate safeguards to prevent civilian deaths,” the committee said. COGAT, the Israeli agency that approves aid shipments into Gaza, responded on Saturday in statement that said Israel “does not use hunger as a weapon of war.” The Israeli agency said the quantity of food trucks entering the Gaza Strip has “risen sharply and significantly” and Israel is “exerting enormous efforts” to facilitate the entry of aid into Gaza with “no limit on quantity.” The agency added that the UN’s work in collecting and distributing the aid to residents the enclave is “neither steady nor effective.” “Despite the repeated claims of the international community, which sometimes do not fully reflect the situation in the Gaza Strip and the humanitarian efforts there, the State of Israel is tirelessly working to provide for humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip,” COGAT said.