UN Rights Chief ‘Shocked And Appalled’ By Israeli Minister’s Comment On Starving Gazans To Death

The UN human rights office, OHCHR, called on Friday for the Israeli authorities to monitor senior officials whose public statements on the Gaza conflict may promote war crimes. 

OHCHR spokesperson Jeremy Laurence said UN Human Rights High Commissioner Volker Türk “is shocked and appalled” by comments made by Israeli finance minister Bezalel Smotrich, who suggested that letting two million Palestinians in Gaza starve to death could be “justified and moral” in order to free hostages.

The High Commissioner condemned these words in the strongest terms, which also incite hatred against innocent civilians.

Risk of incitement

Mr. Laurence explained that the starvation of civilians as a method of warfare and the collective punishment of the Palestinian population are both war crimes.

“This direct and public statement risks inciting other atrocity crimes,” he said. “Such statements, especially by public officials, must cease immediately. They must be investigated and if found to amount to a crime, must be prosecuted and punished.”

Mr. Laurence also reiterated OHCHR’s long-standing appeal for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, the release of all hostages and increased humanitarian aid flows into the enclave.

“This is an immediate call to the Israeli authorities that it is their responsibility to monitor this behaviour,” he said. “Beyond that, let’s take it one step at a time. That is the first stage. It is the Israelis’ responsibility.”

‘Exodus’ from Khan Younis 

Meanwhile, the effects of the latest evacuation order in Gaza are already “very visible”, a senior communications officer with the UN agency that assists Palestine refugees, UNRWA, said on Friday. 

Louise Wateridge spoke to UN News a day after the Israeli military issued the directive, forcing thousands to flee eastern and central Khan Younis and the Al Salqa area of Deir Al-Balah. 

Ms. Wateridge was in Khan Younis on Thursday afternoon and witnessed hundreds of families heading west in temperatures that surpassed 30 degrees Celsius. 

“The scenes were horrific,” she said.  “It’s like an exodus of these people once again. They’re carrying whatever they can. They don’t appear to have many belongings left. We saw less vehicles with families and it was mostly people on foot.” 

Polio vaccine campaign 

Ms. Wateridge also addressed plans to vaccinate more than half a million children in Gaza against polio following the discovery of the disease in sewage samples last month.

UNRWA, together with the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the Gaza Ministry of Health are set to launch two rounds of innoculations in the coming days. 

“This campaign, of course, would be much easier to facilitate and much quicker to facilitate with a ceasefire,” she said.  

“We have been calling for a ceasefire for several months. It will deeply benefit any kind of humanitarian response in the Gaza Strip, including the vaccination response to polio.” 

She underlined UNRWA’s deep commitment to lead the vaccination campaigns on the ground, highlighting the agency’s role as the largest organization in the Gaza Strip.