Collective punishment of Palestinian civilians 'amounts to war crime': UN human rights chief

Israel's collective punishment of Palestinian civilians "amounts to a war crime," the UN High commissioner for human rights said on Wednesday.

Volker Turk made the remarks following a five-day visit to the Middle East amid intensifying attacks by Israeli forces against the Gaza Strip that began on Oct. 7, after an attack by Hamas.

"The collective punishment by Israel of Palestinian civilians amounts also to a war crime, as does the unlawful forcible evacuation of civilians," Turk, an Austrian lawyer, said in a media briefing. "The massive bombardments by Israel have killed, maimed and injured in particular women and children."

On Tuesday, Turk stopped at the Rafah border crossing into Gaza, where a trickle of aid trucks has been allowed in in recent days, but just a fraction of the aid that used to be admitted, and far too little to sustain the 2.2 million people of Gaza.

In addition to relentless airstrikes against Gaza since Oct. 7, with targets including hospitals, homes, and houses of worship, Israel has also cut off fuel, electricity, and water supplies, and at first barred the delivery of all aid.

Weeks ago Israel also told Gazans in the north Gaza Strip they had to move to the south, despite warnings that doing so would lead to a humanitarian catastrophe.

Despite the many thousands who made the move, bombings of southern Gaza have continued to this day, with observers saying no place in Gaza is safe from Israeli attacks.