The United Nations report accusing Israel of committing genocide in Gaza has been published at a critical time for the general assembly and the international community.
The report compiles what it says is detailed evidence that Israel has breached the 1948 UN Genocide Convention, which defined genocide as a crime. The word genocide, and the convention that defined it as a crime, were direct consequences of Nazi Germany’s eradication of six million Jews.
While Israel and its ally the United States reject the UN report, the genocide charge has changed the political environment in advance of the assembly session on September 22nd. This could render recognition of a Palestinian state meaningful and encourage some member states to suggest sanctions against Israel.
At the opening of this year’s session, Britain, France, Australia, Canada and others are set to join 147 of the 193 UN members by recognising the virtual Palestinian state. Recognition by key western powers could mark a turning point in efforts to secure the emergence of a truncated Palestinian state under the globally supported two-state solution.
RM Block
Due to sensitivities over Germany’s second World War slaughter of Europe’s Jewish communities, Berlin has refused to recognise a Palestinian state but has said it will back a UN resolution calling for the two-state solution.
Israel has argued that the UN human rights council that commissioned the report is biased and pro-Hamas. Israel has denied allegations that it has violated the laws of war and international humanitarian law. Israel has justified its onslaught on Gaza as self-defence, following the October 2023 attack on southern Israel by Hamas which killed 1,200 and abducted 250.
However, international rights experts have charged Israel with violating the principle of proportionality by attacking the 2.3 million Palestinians in Gaza, killing nearly 65,000, 83 per cent being civilians, displacing 90 per cent of the population, and rendering the enclave uninhabitable.
These are listed among the actions defining genocide in the convention which has been adopted by 153 states, including Israel, its US ally, and Palestine. Palestine’s accession to human rights treaties in 2014, 2017 and 2019 has defined both local and external obligations governing rights in the Palestinian territories.
Israel and the US have criticised the Palestinian Authority for “lawfare” – calling on human rights bodies to exert pressure on Israel to end its Gaza war and its occupation and rights violations in East Jerusalem and the West Bank.
The UN’s charge of genocide is nothing new. The accusation has already been made by key Israeli rights groups and many others. This weight of this report, however, and its timing, may well help advance the cause of Palestinian statehood.
In addition, it looks set to deepen international divisions about the war.
On one side are countries who demand an immediate end to the killing and destruction in Gaza, and condemn the famine caused by Israel’s siege. They include Ireland and a growing number of European counties, including the UK and France.
On the other are Israel and the United States. US president Donald Trump’s administration continues to provide crucial military support and political cover. This remains vital for Israel’s war in Gaza and its military activities elsewhere in the Middle East.
