Press Statement The International Commission “Hashd” Condemns the Ongoing Israeli Genocide and Aggression Against Civilians in Gaza

Date: October 20, 2023

Time: 1:00 PM Local Time

Original Language: Arabic

Press Statement

On the Fourteenth Consecutive Day

The International Commission “Hashd” Condemns the Ongoing Israeli Genocide and Aggression Against Civilians in Gaza

As the wide-scale Israeli aggression on Gaza and the continuous war of genocide and collective punishment persist since Saturday, October 7, 2023, The International Commission to Support Palestinians Rights (Hashd) reaffirms that the Israeli aggression on Gaza is primarily directed against civilians, particularly women and children, and civilian infrastructure. This aggression has led to the death of 4,000 citizens, with an additional 1,300 people still buried under the rubble of their homes and 13,000 injured. Of the casualties, 65% are women and children.

Furthermore, 25% of residential buildings, towers, multi-story complexes, civilian and economic structures, and infrastructure facilities were destroyed or damaged due to the extensive shelling. The use of scorched earth policies, incendiary devices, and indiscriminate bombing has caused widespread destruction and demographic changes in densely populated residential neighborhoods in cities and refugee camps in the Gaza Strip.

On the fourteenth day, military aircraft continued to bombard civilian homes in various areas of the Strip, resulting in an additional 22 massacres in Jabalia Camp, Beit Lahia Project, Gaza City, and Khan Yunis. One notable incident occurred at the St. Professor Orthodox Church in Gaza, which houses hundreds of Christian and Muslim refugees, resulting in the death of 8 citizens, injuries to dozens, and extensive damage to the church’s buildings. In another escalation of destruction, residential towers in northern Gaza Province, Gaza City, Zahraa City, and Khan Yunis were targeted, leading to the destruction of dozens of them.

Half of Gaza’s population has become displaced, with more than a million citizens forcibly displaced, mostly women and children. They are living in catastrophic humanitarian conditions due to the lack of basic necessities caused by the retaliatory collective sanctions imposed by the Israeli occupation. The sanctions included the cutting off of electricity and water, the obstruction of aid, and the imposition of a full blockade on the Strip, all while continuing the brutal military attacks. These attacks involved the use of thousands of internationally banned explosive devices and weapons, causing devastation on the 360 square kilometers of Gaza and leading to the deliberate and systematic crime of genocide targeting human beings. This included massacres against Palestinian families through the destruction of their homes without prior warning, resulting in around 500 massacres and 2,776 martyrs. Hospitals, schools, mosques, churches, government and private buildings, streets, water wells, bakeries, shops, economic facilities, and service facilities were also targeted.

Since the beginning of the Israeli aggression, the Israeli occupation forces have intensified their grave crimes and violations against civilians in the West Bank, resulting in the martyrdom of 83 citizens, including 14 martyrs from Tulkarm Governorate, and more than 2,000 citizens injured in various ways. The occupation forces also escalated their arbitrary arrests in the West Bank and Jerusalem, with nearly 5,000 detainees.

In the areas within the 1948 borders, campaigns of racist incitement, arrests, and assaults on peaceful gatherings condemning the aggression continued.

The International Body “Hushd” strongly condemns the international community’s failure and hesitancy to stop the aggression and genocidal crimes in Gaza. It holds the Israeli occupation, along with its partner states and supporters, responsible for international crimes and severe violations of all principles of international humanitarian law, which do not allow any justification for the Israeli occupation to target civilians and civilian structures. These are crimes prohibited under the Rome Statute that established the International Criminal Court, the rules of international humanitarian law, especially the Geneva and Hague Conventions, the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, all human rights treaties, the Convention on the Rights of the Child, and the United Nations Security Council resolutions related to the protection of children and women during armed conflicts.

The International Commission to Support Palestinians Rights (Hashd) demands:

1. Urgent and immediate international and Arab intervention by international institutions, particularly the United Nations, and high contracting parties to the Geneva Conventions, to activate their role by compelling the Israeli state and apartheid to abide by the rules of international humanitarian law and the laws of war. This must ensure the protection of civilians and civilian infrastructure, expedite the opening of a humanitarian corridor to evacuate the wounded, and provide medical supplies, fuel, and humanitarian assistance. Moreover, it must work towards implementing international legitimacy resolutions and ending the long-term Israeli occupation to guarantee the Palestinians’ right to self-determination.
2. The international community should stop the policy of double standards in dealing with Palestinian rights, condemn the Israeli occupation’s crimes in Gaza and other occupied territories, halt the export of weapons to the occupying state, boycott and impose sanctions on it, and hold its leaders accountable for their continuous crimes against civilians.
3. All international humanitarian institutions, particularly those focused on human rights, child rights, and women’s rights, should intensify their efforts to provide international protection and all forms of humanitarian support to children and women, ensuring their safety and preserving their human dignity.

In conclusion, as The International Commission Hashd  witnesses the solidarity of Palestinians, Arab and international solidarity movements, and all Arab, regional, and international organizations, “Hushd” calls on them to intensify their legal, political, diplomatic, human rights, and popular actions on all levels to ensure the protection of Palestinian civilians and put an end to Israeli aggression, genocidal crimes, ethnic cleansing, forced displacement, and collective sanctions against the Palestinians.