Vienna, 27 May (EFE).- The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk said on Tuesday that the recent Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip are not covered by the right to self-defense under international law and do not respect fundamental humanitarian principles.
In an interview with Austrian public radio ORF, Türk acknowledged Israel’s right to defend its population following the Hamas terrorist attacks on Oct. 7, 2023, but insisted that the offensive on Gaza was no longer justifiable under the right to self-defense.
Following the attacks, in which approximately 1,100 people were killed and 251 were kidnapped, Israel responded with a massive ongoing military offensive that has killed around 54,000 people, primarily Palestinian civilians, and has escalated in recent weeks.
According to Türk, Israel’s actions can no longer be justified because they do not align with fundamental humanitarian principles.
The UN human rights chief said he had “no words” to describe the catastrophic situation experienced by the population of Gaza, who have been forced to repeatedly displace themselves and have had no access to humanitarian aid for the past eight weeks.
Türk described the fact that approximately 80 percent of the Gaza Strip had become a military territory, where no one was allowed to stay, as a “forced expulsion.”
The UN official will meet on Tuesday with of the Austrian government and parliament in Vienna.
He has repeatedly called for greater action by the international community to stop the current Israeli offensive, considering it tantamount to ethnic cleansing.
“The methodical destruction of entire neighborhoods and the denial of humanitarian assistance underline that there appears to be a push for a permanent demographic shift in Gaza that is in defiance of international law and is tantamount to ethnic cleansing,” Türk said in a statement on May 16. EFE
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