Aftermath of al-Ahli hospital in Gaza on Oct. 18, 2023. (Credit: Mohammed Al-Masri/Reuters)
Amnesty International said in a press release that it "documented unlawful Israeli attacks, including indiscriminate attacks, which caused mass civilian casualties and must be investigated as war crimes."
The organization says it spoke to survivors and eyewitnesses, analyzed satellite imagery and verified photos and videos to investigate Israeli bombardments between Oct. 7 and 12, which caused horrific destruction and wiped out entire families.
"In their stated intent to use all means to destroy Hamas, Israeli forces have shown a shocking disregard for civilian lives. They have pulverized street after street of residential buildings, killing civilians on a mass scale and destroying essential infrastructure, while new restrictions mean Gaza is fast running out of water, medicine, fuel and electricity. Testimonies from eyewitness and survivors highlighted, again and again, how Israeli attacks decimated Palestinian families, causing such destruction that surviving relatives have little but rubble to remember their loved ones by," said Amnesty International's Secretary General Agnès Callamard.
Amnesty investigated five Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip, which took place between Oct. 7 and 12, and struck residential buildings, a refugee camp, a family home and a public market. The Israeli Army claims it only attacks military targets, but Amnesty found no evidence of the presence of fighters or other military objectives in the vicinity during the attacks. Amnesty found that the Israeli military failed to take all precautions ahead of attacks, including by not giving Palestinian civilians effective prior warnings. In some cases, they did not warn civilians at all.
"The five cases presented barely scratch the surface of the horror that Amnesty has documented and illustrate the devastating impact that Israel’s aerial bombardments are having on people in Gaza. For 16 years, Israel’s illegal blockade has made Gaza the world’s biggest open-air prison. The international community must act now to prevent it becoming a giant graveyard. We are calling on Israeli forces to immediately end unlawful attacks in Gaza and ensure that they take all feasible precautions to minimize harm to civilians and damage to civilian objects. Israel’s allies must immediately impose a comprehensive arms embargo given that serious violations under international law are being committed," said Callamard.
"Amnesty International is calling on Hamas and other armed groups to urgently release all civilian hostages, and to immediately stop firing indiscriminate rockets. There can be no justification for the deliberate killing of civilians under any circumstances," added Callamard.
"It is vital that the Office of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court urgently expedites its ongoing investigation into evidence of war crimes and other crimes under international law by all parties. Without justice and the dismantlement of Israel’s system of apartheid against Palestinians, there can be no end to the horrifying civilian suffering we are witnessing," Callamard concluded.
Amnesty International continues to investigate dozens of attacks in Gaza.