HRW: Israel Starves Children in Gaza
A Human Rights Watch (HRW), argued today that children in Gaza have died from complications related to lack of food.
"The Israeli Government began to use hunger as a weapon of war, constituting a war crime".
HRW's position follows similar positions from other humanitarian organizations. The crisis in Gaza, whose dimensions exceed any acceptable threshold and shame humanity with daily reports of genocide by Israel, must end.
It is time for the international community to take immediate measures to ensure the protection of human rights and provide urgent access to humanitarian aid for the vulnerable population in the region.
The Announcement
In a statement sent to newsrooms, HRW, based in New York, reports on reports made by doctors and families in Gaza who described the situation of the vast majority of children, as well as pregnant and lactating mothers, who suffer from severe malnutrition and dehydration. , with hospitals poorly equipped to treat them.
In the document, HRW emphasizes that governments “must impose targeted sanctions and suspend arms transfers” to pressure the Israeli Government to guarantee access to humanitarian aid and basic services in Gaza and act in accordance with the International Court of Justice (TIJ).
Israel has no alternative and must comply with its obligations under international law and the recent ICJ decision in the case of the genocide case brought by South Africa. Defending this position, Omar Shakir, HRW director for Israel and Palestine stated:
“The Israeli government’s use of hunger as a weapon of war has proven deadly for children in Gaza.”
“Israel needs to put an end to this war crime, end this suffering and allow humanitarian aid to reach the entire Gaza Strip unhindered.”
On March 18, a partnership coordinated by the United Nations of 15 international organizations and agencies of the ONU investigating the hunger crisis in Gaza reported:
“All the evidence points to a major acceleration in death and malnutrition.”
The partnership stated that in northern Gaza, where an estimated 70% of the population is experiencing a “catastrophic famine”, between mid-March and May there will be widespread misfortune and indiscriminate deaths.
Death from Malnutrition
On the 01st of this month, the Gaza Ministry of Health reported that 32 people, including 28 children, had died of malnutrition and dehydration in hospitals in northern Gaza. The next day, the organization Save the Children confirmed the death of 27 children from starvation and disease.
At the beginning of March, employees of World Health Organization (WHO) found “children dying of hunger” at Kamal Adwan and al-Awda hospitals in northern Gaza.
In the south of the Gaza Strip, where aid is more accessible but still very insufficient, government agencies United Nations stated, in mid-February, that 5% of children under 02 years old were seriously malnourished.
HRW mentions in the statement Hussam Abu Safiya, who directs the pediatrics unit at the Kamal Adwan Hospital, which indicated on the 04th of this month that 26 children had died after suffering complications related to hunger. 16 of the children were under 05 months old and 10 were between 01 and 8 years old.
International Humanitarian Law, reminds HRW, prohibits the starvation of civilians as a method of war and the Rome Statute of International Criminal Court (ICC) establishes that intentionally starving civilians, “depriving them of objects essential to their survival, including deliberately preventing the provision of humanitarian aid“, it is a war crime.
Disproportionate Retaliation
Since the Hamas attacks, which occurred on October 07, 2023 in Israel, the Israeli Government has deliberately blocked the delivery of aid, food and fuel to Gaza, preventing humanitarian assistance and depriving civilians of the means of survival, as HRW has been denouncing.
The Israeli officials who ordered or carried out these actions are “committing collective punishment against the civilian population and starving civilians as a method of warfare, which constitutes a war crime”, the organization added.
The actions of the Israeli Government that compromise the capacity of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) to play its recognized role in distributing aid in Gaza.”worsened the effects of restrictions".
Conclusion
The situation in Gaza is alarming, with reports of children dying indiscriminately and suffering from malnutrition and dehydration due to a lack of access to food and adequate medical care. It is in this context that HRW directly holds the Israeli government responsible, accusing it of using hunger as a weapon of war.
This position by Israel constitutes a war crime under international law. It is time for the international community to take urgent action to guarantee access to humanitarian aid and protect the rights of children in Gaza, using all necessary measures.
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Picture: © 2023 Fatima Shbair / Associated Press / Alamy Stock Photo
