On Tuesday, the United Nations human rights chief called Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant’s decision to put a “total siege” on the Gaza Strip, denying its population of more than two million people access to electricity, food, and fuel supplies, a breach of international law. Volker Turk, appointed high commissioner by Secretary-General Antonio Guterres last year, urged Israel to rethink its position.
In his first statement since the Gaza attack, Turk said, “The imposition of sieges that endanger the lives of civilians by depriving them of goods essential for their survival is prohibited under international humanitarian law.”
According to Turk, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, “the obligation to take constant care to spare civilians and civilian objects remains applicable throughout the attacks, which have already hit residential buildings, including large tower blocks, schools, and U.N. facilities.”
He noted that Israeli air strikes had also struck a water, sanitation, and hygiene facility in Gaza, leaving up to 123,000 people without safe drinking water. The World Health Organization is calling for a humanitarian corridor to be set up to allow medical supplies into the strip. The organization warned that the only power plant that provides Gaza with electricity could run out of fuel in a few days, cutting off medical services, pumps for water and cooking, and the ability to heat homes.
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The blockade of Gaza, imposed by Israel and Egypt after a raid by Hezbollah militants on an Israeli ship in 2010, has been condemned internationally as possibly amounting to a war crime. The blockade has severely impacted the economy of the densely populated Palestinian territory. In recent years, Israel has eased some restrictions on the movement of goods into and out of Gaza, though it still prohibits the entry of weapons and dual-use items that could be used for military purposes. Egypt has also partially opened its Rafah border crossing, allowing a limited number of persons to travel into and out of Gaza.
Many Israelis have described the attack on Saturday as their country’s 9/11 or Pearl Harbor and urged the government to take strict action against Hezbollah, which is widely considered responsible for the raid on the aid flotilla. However, the government says it is focused on defending itself against rocket fire from Gaza and that mediation efforts should wait until the hostilities have ended.
Speaking Monday at the Munich Security Conference, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz echoed that sentiment, urging “All parties to respect the ceasefire and the internationally accepted principles of conflict resolution.” The French President, Emmanuel Macron, said he and his counterparts in Lebanon, Jordan, Egypt, and the United Arab Emirates have spoken by phone over the weekend about resuming peace talks with Hezbollah. On Monday, Hezbollah’s Lebanese-based broadcaster Al Manar reported that three of its fighters had been killed in Israeli shelling. The organization’s leader, Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah, said the deaths were unavoidable and the group was fighting an occupying force.
