UN says destruction in Gaza amounts to 'grave breach' of Fourth Geneva Convention, war crime

By Burak Bir

LONDON (AA) - The UN human rights chief said Thursday that the destruction of civilian infrastructure in the Gaza Strip by Israel is a violation of a Geneva Convention “and a war crime."

"Extensive destruction of property, not justified by military necessity and carried out unlawfully and wantonly, amounts to a grave breach of the Fourth Geneva Convention, and a war crime," Volker Turk told reporters.

Last month, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) issued an interim order demanding Israel stop obstructing aid deliveries into Gaza and improve the humanitarian situation in the enclave, following a lawsuit by South Africa accusing Tel Aviv of committing genocide.

Israel has pounded Gaza since a cross-border attack by Palestinian group Hamas in October, which Tel Aviv said killed nearly 1,200 people.

At least 27,840 Palestinians have since been killed and 67,317 others injured in the Israeli onslaught, according to local health authorities.

About 85% of Gazans have been displaced by the Israeli offensive, while all of them are food insecure, according to the UN. Hundreds of thousands of people are living without shelter, and ⁠less than half of aid trucks are entering the territory than before the start of the conflict.