It should be noted that in the conditions of an armed and informational war, it is not easy to make sure of the truth of the information provided. Only a handful of foreign media teams are currently working in the Gaza Strip. The first news that burials were found on the territory of hospitals in the Gaza Strip appeared over the weekend.
The UN is calling for an independent investigation
The remains of more than 300 people have been found in the territory of Nasser Hospital in Hanjunis alone, summing up what officials have said in the last day. Palestinian officials believe that the Israeli army is responsible for the deaths of these people. The state administration institutions in the Gaza Strip are under the control of the terrorist organization “Hamas”.
Israel’s armed forces dismiss the statement by Gaza officials as baseless. The statement issued by the army on Tuesday says that in February, the Israeli army carried out an operation against the “Hamas” fighters on the territory of the Nasser Hospital. At least 200 militants were captured then.
The army says in its statement that while searching for captured Israelis, soldiers found buried human corpses and examined them to see if there could be captured or missing Israelis. The human corpses were then placed back in the burial grounds as a mark of respect. No Israeli hostages were found at the time.
The UN is alarmed by reports of mass graves. The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Falker Turk, has expressed concern over the damage to both the Nasser Hospital and the Shifa Health Center in Gaza City. He has called for an independent and transparent investigation involving an international team of investigators.
Hospitals need special protection
Tirk points out that according to international laws, hospitals must be specially protected. He also reminded that the deliberate killing of civilians is a war crime.
“We feel the need to raise the alarm because it is clear that several bodies have been found. We do not know how many. There are reports that the hands of some were tied. Which, of course, indicates serious violations of international human rights and humanitarian law,” concludes the UN High Commissioner human rights office representative Ravina Shamdasani.
The team of the “Sky News” TV channel, which is located in the territory of the Nasser hospital, says that it has not heard any evidence of bodies found with their hands tied. True, in the material published this morning, “Sky News” journalists, analyzing satellite images and images and videos published on social networks, concluded that during the presence of Israeli forces in the territory of the Nasser hospital, damage was done to the mass graves there. Since then, new graves have been dug there.
The US State Department has expressed concern over reports of mass graves in hospitals in the Gaza Strip and is in communication with the Israeli government on the matter.
CONTEXT:
On October 7, 2023, “Hamas” carried out a massacre in Israel, murdering around 1,200 people, the absolute majority of whom were civilians. About 250 more people, including women, children and old people, were taken hostage by the terrorists and taken to the Gaza Strip.
Israel declared martial law in the country and launched extensive air and artillery strikes, as well as a ground operation against Hamas targets in the group’s controlled Gaza Strip, as well as stepped up military operations in the West Bank.
So far, more than 33,000 people, mostly women and children, have died in the Gaza Strip, according to data from the Hamas-run Health Ministry, and the UN has warned of the growing threat of famine there.
