UN report finds suspected violations of war law by Israeli army in Gaza

The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) may have repeatedly violated fundamental principles of the laws of war in a series of prohibited indiscriminate attacks on Gaza, according to a report issued by the United Nations (UN) Human Rights Office on Wednesday, reported Xinhua.

Released during the 56th session of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva, the report details six notable attacks targeting Gaza's residential buildings, a school, refugee camps, and a market between Oct. 9 and Dec. 2, 2023, which involved the suspected use of GBU-31, GBU-32 and GBU-39 bombs.

GBU-31, 32 and 39 bombs are mostly used to penetrate through several floors of concrete and can completely collapse tall structures. Given how densely populated the areas targeted were, the use of an explosive weapon with such wide area effects is highly likely to amount to a prohibited indiscriminate attack, the report finds.

These attacks "led to high numbers of civilian fatalities and widespread destruction of civilian objects, raising serious concerns under the laws of war with respect to the principles of distinction, proportionality and precautions in attack," said the report.

"The requirement to select means and methods of warfare that avoid or at the very least minimize to every extent civilian harm appears to have been consistently violated in Israel's bombing campaign," said UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk.

The report also noted that unlawful targeting when committed as part of a widespread or systematic attack on a civilian population, in line with a state or organizational policy, may also implicate the commission of crimes against humanity.

"Israel's choices of methods and means of conducting hostilities in Gaza since Oct. 7, including the use of explosive weapons with wide area effects in densely populated areas, have failed to ensure that they effectively distinguish between civilians and combatants," it said.

Although the report primarily focuses on Israel, it also highlights that Palestinian armed groups have continued to fire indiscriminate projectiles toward Israel, inconsistent with their obligations under international humanitarian law.