GENEVA: A UN committee on Thursday (Sep 19) accused Israel of extreme breaches of a worldwide treaty defending kids’s rights, saying its military actions in Gaza had a catastrophic affect on them and are among the many worst violations in latest historical past.
Palestinian well being authorities say 41,000 individuals have been killed in Gaza since Israel launched its navy marketing campaign in response to cross-border assaults by Hamas on Oct 7 the place 1,200 have been killed and 250 taken hostage, in accordance with Israeli tallies.
Of these killed in Gaza, at the very least 11,355 are kids, Palestinian information reveals, and hundreds extra are injured.
“The outrageous loss of life of kids is sort of traditionally distinctive. That is an especially darkish place in historical past,” Bragi Gudbrandsson, Vice Chair of the Committee, advised reporters.
“I do not suppose now we have seen earlier than, a violation that’s so huge, as we have seen in Gaza. These are extraordinarily grave violations that we don’t typically see,” he stated.
Israel, which ratified the treaty in 1991, despatched a big delegation to the UN hearings in Geneva between 3-4 September.
They argued that the treaty didn’t apply in Gaza or the West Financial institution and stated that it was dedicated to respecting worldwide humanitarian legislation. It says its navy marketing campaign in Gaza is geared toward eliminating the Palestinian enclave’s Hamas rulers and that it doesn’t goal civilians however that the militants conceal amongst them, which Hamas denies.