Israel denounced as “outrageous” the UN investigation’s conclusion that it was intentionally trying to undermine Gaza’s healthcare system and mistreat Palestinian prisoners on Friday.
Israel has “perpetrated a concerted policy to destroy Gaza’s healthcare system,” according to the United Nations Independent International Commission of Inquiry.
In a report published on Thursday, the nation said that it is “committing war crimes and the crime against humanity of extermination with relentless and deliberate attacks on medical personnel and facilities.”
In a statement from its Geneva embassy, Israel stated that it strongly disagreed with the accusations.
“This latest report is another blatant attempt by the CoI to delegitimise the very existence of the State of Israel and obstruct its right to protect its population, while covering up the crimes of terrorist organisations.
“This report shamelessly portrays Israel’s operations in terror-infested health facilities in Gaza as a matter of policy against Gaza’s health system, while entirely dismissing overwhelming evidence that medical facilities in Gaza have been systematically used by Hamas and the
Palestinian Islamic Jihad for terrorist activities,” it said.
Israel also denied claims of widespread and systematic maltreatment of Palestinian inmates, which constituted war crimes and crimes against humanity.
“Israel is completely committed to international legal standards for the treatment of detainees.” The mission prohibited the use of excessive force and ill-treatment.
It accused the committee of establishing a “alternate reality” and so contributing to “the exacerbation of this conflict”.
“We call on states to speak out against this prejudiced approach, which only serves to further stain the credibility of the Human Rights Council and the United Nations at large.”
The three-person panel, established by the UN Human Rights Council in May 2021 to investigate alleged international law violations in Israel and the Palestinian territories, was releasing its second report since Hamas’ October 7 attack last year, which ignited the present conflict.
Israel attacked the Gaza Strip in response to last year’s October 7 Hamas militant attack, which killed 1,206 people, the majority of them were civilians, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli official data, including hostages died in captivity.
More than 42,000 people have been killed in Gaza as a result of Israel’s retaliatory offensive, according to estimates from Hamas’ health ministry, which the UN has acknowledged as reliable.
