GAZA, (PIC)
The Israeli army killed 70 Palestinians and wounded 200 others, mostly children and women, in less than 12 hours in Khan Yunis, south of the Gaza Strip, the Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor said in a statement issued on Monday.
The report pointed out that hundreds of thousands of civilians have received new evacuation orders in the area.
The crimes committed by the Israeli army against civilians are well-established and consistent. These crimes include killing, mass murder, starvation, denial of humanitarian aid entry, forced evacuation, destruction of civilian objects, and denial of any kind of stability, as has been the case in Khan Yunis since Monday morning. Such actions suggest that the occupation is essentially destroying the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip in every way that it can, the report indicated.
The Euro-Med pointed out that every time there is talk of going back to the negotiating table to reach a truce and an exchange agreement, the Israeli army purposefully increases the number of massacres and mass killings against Palestinian civilians. This raises concerns that Israel is engaging in political blackmail and pressure by using the killing and displacement of civilians as a tool, as it has done repeatedly in recent weeks.
After carrying out a premeditated mass murder this morning, Monday, 22 July 2024, the Israeli army launched dozens of raids, fire belts, and artillery shelling on homes, streets, and gatherings of displaced people. Thousands of these people fled into the streets in panic, looking for a safe place that did not exist.
These towns were among those covered by the Israeli evacuation orders: Bani Suhaila and its surroundings; Abasan al-Kabira and al-Jadidah and its surroundings; al-Qarara and its surroundings; al-Fukhari and its surroundings; Khuza’a and its surroundings; al-Qurain, al-Manara, al-Salam, Jurat al-Lot, Qizan al-Najjar, Sheikh Nasser, al-Mahatta, al-Satar, and al-Katiba. This coincided with the Israeli army’s declaration that the so-called humanitarian zone in Al-Mawasi would be reduced. This was all part of Israel’s media disinformation campaign and psychological warfare tactics, since military assaults on the tents and forced displacement of people have continued in this area for several weeks, resulting in hundreds of deaths and injuries.
The Euro-Med field team recorded the Israeli army bombing six homes on the heads of their occupants, out of the ten residences for which preliminary information was available since the start of the Israeli military operation on Khan Yunis at 7:30 a.m.
70 citizens were killed and over 200 others were injured as a result of the Israeli bombing, many of whom were women and children. Two of the deceased children were infants, while several families had been taken off the civil registry, including the Jabour and Harb families.
Given these facts, the Euro-Med called on all nations to fulfil their international obligations by enacting strong sanctions against Israel and severing all political, financial, and military support and cooperation.
Additionally, it called on the International Criminal Court to investigate any and all crimes committed by Israel in the Gaza Strip; broaden its investigation into the criminal responsibility of all parties, including Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Galant, in order to hold all perpetrators accountable; issue arrest warrants for those responsible; and acknowledge and address Israel’s crimes in the Strip as international crimes that fall under the purview of the International Criminal Court and are clearly crimes of genocide.
