A group of ten independent experts studying the situation in Gaza declared that the Israeli military operations amount to genocide and have created a famine. Over the past nine months, Israel has destroyed most of the infrastructure in Gaza and only allowed a trickle of aid to enter the besieged enclave.
On Tuesday, the officials explained, “We declare that Israel’s intentional and targeted starvation campaign against the Palestinian people is a form of genocidal violence and has resulted in famine across all of Gaza.” They continued, “We call upon the international community to prioritize the delivery of humanitarian aid by land by any means necessary, end Israel’s siege, and establish a ceasefire.”
Tel Aviv attacked the experts, claiming they were spreading “misinformation.”
Since October 7, Israel has only allowed a small portion of the aid needed to sustain life in Gaza to enter the Strip. Additionally, Israeli forces have decimated Gaza’s agricultural sector, bombed multiple aid distribution warehouses, and destroyed several bakeries.
The policy of blocking aid while conducting a massive, indiscriminate bombing campaign has forced nearly a million Palestinians to the brink of famine for several months.
Tel Aviv relies on Washington for weapons and to provide diplomatic cover for Israel’s war crimes at the UN Security Council. The relationship has given the White House significant influence over Tel Aviv’s decision-making. Still, President Joe Biden has refused to use that leverage to force Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to allow more aid into the Strip.
Rather than applying that pressure on Netanyahu to open border crossings to facilitate more aid shipments, Biden elected to create a complex sea-route for assistance to enter Gaza via a floating pier.
On Tuesday, the US said the pier would only be temporarily reinstalled for a few days before it is permanently shuttered. The sea route failed to bring a meaningful amount of aid to the Palestinian people.
After Israel seized the Rafah border crossing in May, Tel Aviv gained complete control over Gaza, causing aid deliveries into the Strip to plummet. The lack of food aid led at least three children to starve to death in early June. Overall, at least 34 Palestinians have succumbed to Israeli-imposed deprivation.
