(NewsWorthy.news) – Ten United Nations experts have released a statement accusing Israel of conducting a “targeted starvation campaign” against the children of Gaza. The statement declared that Tel Aviv’s campaign amounted to “genocidal violence” against Palestinians resulting in deadly famine across the region. Though the UN has not officially declared that there is a famine in the Gaza Strip, UN experts on the right to food such as Michael Fakhri have said the existence of famine conditions in Palestine cannot be denied.
The UN’s allegations follow the International Criminal Court’s application in May 2024 for the arrest warrants of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Minister of Defense Yoav Gallant. The ICC’s Chief Prosecutor Karim Khan, who also called for the arrests of Hamas leaders in connection with alleged war crimes, accused Israel’s government of using starvation as a “method of warfare”. Other accusations against Tel Aviv included “extermination” and intentionally directing attacks towards civilian populations.
In April Israeli officials denied claims that there is starvation in Gaza, and have called the allegations “antisemitic”. Israel’s mission to Geneva accused the UN experts of spreading “misinformation” and “supporting Hamas” in response to the allegations that Tel Aviv is weaponizing famine. According to the UN experts, 34 Palestinians have died of malnutrition since the October 7 attacks, most of whom were children.
In June the US imposed sanctions on the extremist Israeli group Tsav 9 after it blocked a foreign aid convoy. Activists had been filmed stamping on and destroying boxes of food being sent to Gaza. President Joe Biden has faced mounting pressure from both pro-Palestine protesters and progressive Democrats to do more to arrange a ceasefire in the conflict.
According to the Hamas-controlled Gaza Ministry of Health, 38,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza since October. Despite Hamas’ political headquarters being located in Qatar, Netanyahu has repeatedly stated the goal of the war is to “destroy” the internationally recognized terrorist organization in Palestine. Though aid agencies have accused Tel Aviv of restricting the flow of aid into the Gaza strip and stalling it with bureaucratic barriers, Israel has blamed Hamas for the delays in humanitarian aid to the region.
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