The UN’s special rapporteur on the right to food, Michael Fakhri has said that Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu prevented the entry of all food, water and medicine to the Gaza territory for more than 50 days, reports Al Jazeera.
“Back in March and January 2024, the International Court of Justice recognised the issue of starvation and famine in Gaza in the context of genocide. And we are seeing it yet again. On March 3, Netanyahu announced that Israel would stop all goods and humanitarian aid from entering Gaza. This was over 50 days ago,” Fakhri said.
“Let’s recall that there is an international criminal warrant against Netanyahu and former [Defence] Minister Gallant for the crime of starvation, for crimes of humanity for mass murder, yet they continue announcing their intentions and executing this starvation campaign with no repercussions,” he said.
“Under international law, there is no condition in which anyone can deny humanitarian aid to civilians. So this is Israel admitting that it is using humanitarian aid for civilians as a bargaining chip, as leverage,” he said.
“This is a clear violation of international law. There is no exception to this,” Fakhri added.
The war began when Hamas-led militants attacked southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing about 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting 251. Most of the hostages have been released in ceasefire agreements or other deals. Hamas currently holds 59 hostages, 24 of them believed to be alive.
Israel’s offensive has since killed over 51,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between civilians and combatants.
The war has destroyed vast parts of Gaza and most of its food production capabilities. Around 90 percent of the population is displaced, with hundreds of thousands of people living in tent camps and bombed-out buildings.
Bd-pratidin English/Tanvir Raihan
