Israel responsible for one of the ‘cruellest genocides in modern history’, says UN expert

Francesca Albanese says Israel is testing new weapons and surveillance technologies

UN special rapporteur Francesca Albanese says people in Gaza continue to endure suffering beyond imagination. Getty Images

A United Nations expert on Thursday called on states to impose an arms embargo and sever trade and financial ties with Israel, accusing it of carrying out a “genocidal campaign” in Gaza.

Francesca Albanese, the UN special rapporteur on the occupied Palestinian territories, told the Human Rights Council in Geneva that Israel was responsible for “one of the cruellest genocides in modern history” in its offensive against Palestinians.

“Fourteen months ago, I warned that this genocide marked an escalatory stage of a long-standing settler colonial project over Gaza, one that has targeted the Palestinian people for over seven decades, and now it is happening, and we must stop it,” she said.

“The situation in the occupied Palestinian territory is apocalyptic. In Gaza, people continue to endure suffering beyond imagination.”

Israel has repeatedly denied allegations of genocide, saying its military operations in Gaza are aimed at dismantling Hamas, the militant group that governs the enclave, following its deadly October 7, 2023 attack on southern Israel.

The US, Israel's top ally, has repeatedly criticised Ms Albanese. This week its UN mission issued a statement saying her allegations that Israel is committing genocide and engaging in apartheid are "false and offensive."

Ms Albanese accused Israel of using its military campaign in Gaza as an opportunity to test new weapons and surveillance technologies, stating it was employing “lethal drones, rudder systems, and other unmanned technology to exterminate a population without restraint”.

She said more than 40 companies were complicit in supporting Israeli settlements and military operations in Gaza.

“The 40 entities named in my report, alongside their parents, subsidiaries, licensees, and franchisees, are just the tip of the iceberg, illustrative of a system that entangles many, many more,” she said.

“What I expose is not a list, it is a system and that is to be addressed.”

Ms Albanese, one of dozens of independent UN-mandated rights experts, said arms companies had reaped “near-record profits” by supplying Israel with advanced weaponry, enabling it to drop 85,000 tonnes of explosives “six times the power of Hiroshima on Gaza”.

“We must reverse the tide,” she said, urging states to impose a full arms embargo, suspend trade agreements, and hold companies legally accountable for alleged violations of international law.

The Gaza war was sparked by a Hamas-led attack on southern Israel communities in October 2023, in which 1,200 were killed and another 250 taken hostage. The attack drew a harsh military response from Israel that has killed more than 57,000 Palestinians and injured more than twice that number, according to health authorities in Gaza.