Explained: The four acts of genocide Israel is accused of committing in Gaza

UN investigators say Israel is killing and harming Palestinians, making Gaza uninhabitable and preventing births

Israel is accused of instilling 'panic and extreme fear' in the Gazan people. AFP

UN war crimes investigators say Israel is committing four of the five acts that define a genocide as it prosecutes its war in Gaza.

In a 72-page report published on Tuesday, the three experts commissioned by the UN said there is “direct evidence” that Israel’s alleged acts of genocide are deliberate.

They said war crimes prosecutors in The Hague should consider amending arrest warrants against Israeli leaders to add the charge of genocide. Israel dismissed it as a “fake report” that relies on statements by Hamas.

The National breaks down the report’s findings.

What is the definition of genocide?

The Genocide Convention, adopted in 1948 after the Holocaust, says genocide is a scheme to destroy a group of people by doing at least one of the following:

(a) Killing them

(b) Causing them serious physical or mental harm

(c) Forcing them to live in lethal conditions

(d) Preventing them from giving birth

(e) Transferring their children to another group.

What do UN investigators say Israel is doing?

(a) Killing Palestinians

The UN commission said Israel has deliberately killed Palestinians by bombing Gaza with “heavy unguided munitions” – instead of more precise weapons.

It said Palestinians have also been killed along evacuation routes and in supposed safe zones, even when there was no fighting nearby. The killing of five-year-old Hind Rajab, the subject of a recent film, was one example mentioned.

Palestinians have also been killed in bombings of hospitals, and shootings at food banks run by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, which is staffed by American guards. Attacks on medical facilities meant others succumbed to injuries.

Despite the many casualties, Israeli authorities “did not intervene to change the means and methods of warfare employed”, the report said. It therefore “finds that the Israeli authorities intended to kill as many Palestinians as possible”.

The GHF said in a statement that "no one has been shot at a GHF site, nor has anyone been targeted by GHF staff". It said the UN investigators did not seek information from the organisation before publishing their report.

Israel is waging a new air campaign to destroy tower blocks in Gaza city. AFP

(b) Causing serious harm to Palestinians

Many survivors of Israel's attacks have lost limbs, suffered serious brain damage or endured emotional trauma, the investigators said. Many of those affected are children.

In addition, the report said explosions have released “toxic remnants” into Gaza's environment that could pose a threat for generations. Smoke and ash are blamed for damaging people's breathing.

On top of that, Israeli eviction orders have left them living in overcrowded shelters with a lack of food and water. According to one estimate the average Gazan has been forced to leave their home six times.

The report found that Israel has “intentionally created an atmosphere of panic and terror and instilled extreme fear” in Gaza's people. It described a “constant fear and feeling of helplessness” among Palestinians, preventing them from leading normal lives.

Many Palestinian children have suffered physical and mental harm as a result of Israeli attacks. AFP

(c) Forcing Palestinians to live in lethal conditions

Investigators said Israel has destroyed land and buildings “essential to Palestinians”, such as hospitals, farmland, bakeries, schools and religious sites.

They said Israel's “unprecedented bombing campaign” has left much of the strip uninhabitable. Moreover, almost two thirds of Gaza's health system is believed to be out of use.

The report then turns to Israel's blockade of food and supplies, which senior UN officials have already blamed for a famine in Gaza city. It says the lack of aid has also worsened problems in hospitals, including for women giving birth.

It lists repeated warnings of an aid crisis that failed to prompt a change of policy from Israel. “The commission therefore finds that Israeli authorities knowingly and deliberately inflicted such conditions of life calculated to bring about the destruction of Palestinians in Gaza,” it said.

An Israeli blockade has left Palestinians desperately short of food. Reuters

(d) Preventing Palestinians from giving birth

Israeli attacks on hospitals have knocked out maternity units and made it harder for pregnant women to receive care, the investigators said.

They analysed an attack on Gaza's largest fertility clinic, where about 4,000 embryos were destroyed. Their finding was that the “standalone building” was probably hit by a shell from an Israeli tank, suggesting it was deliberately targeted to prevent births.

“It is reasonable to conclude that the Israeli security forces knew of the function of the clinic and intended to target it and destroy the reproductive material within,” the report said.

(e) Transferring children – not established

The UN experts said they had no evidence of Israel forcibly transferring children to another group.

What does Israel say?

Israel has long rejected allegations of war crimes and genocide. It disputes death toll figures, and says attacks on hospitals and residential buildings are aimed at Hamas militants operating there.

Responding to Tuesday's findings, the Israeli Foreign Ministry said the report “relies entirely on Hamas falsehoods, laundered and repeated by others”.

It was Hamas, according to Israel, which committed a genocidal act during the October 7 attacks in 2023. It triggered the present war and has been described as the worst massacre of Jewish people since the Holocaust.