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The UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and Israel has accused Israel of committing war crimes and crimes against humanity, including extermination, persecution, torture, rape and other forms of sexual violence.
In its latest report on October 26, the commission alleged that Palestinian civilians have been deliberately targeted and that genocide continues in Gaza. In its detailed submission presented to the UN General Assembly, the Commission highlighted an unprecedented escalation in state-sponsored violence and fatalities across the West Bank since late 2023. "The report to the UN General Assembly, which focuses on killings and bodily and mental harm by state-actors, found that the situation in the West Bank has deteriorated gravely since 7 October 2023. The number of deaths caused by airstrikes in the West Bank has increased significantly: six Palestinians were killed by airstrikes in the West Bank between 2008 and 6 October 2023, while 254 Palestinians were killed by airstrikes between 7 October 2023 and 30 September 2026. The Commission concluded that Palestinians in the West Bank are being targeted on the basis of their nationality, race and ethnicity, gender and age," the report stated. Detailing the humanitarian catastrophe in the besieged enclave, the report affirmed that Israeli authorities have systematically continued military actions aimed at civilian destruction. "In Gaza, the report found that Israeli authorities and forces continue to commit genocidal acts even after the so-called ceasefire agreement, with the intent to destroy the Palestinian people, in whole or in part," it said. The findings come even as Israel has carried out continuous attacks. Meanwhile, on Monday, Israel Defence Forces (IDF) announced that it has eliminated four operatives affiliated with Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad in a series of targeted strikes across the Gaza Strip. In a statement shared on X, the Israeli military confirmed that three operatives were killed during operations on Sunday, identifying them as Islamic Jihad operatives Alaa Abu Zaid and Hamdan Suleiman Ibrahim Abu Amra, as well as Hamas sniper operative Fawzi Salam Odat Allah Sawarha. The UN Commission report further highlighted that Israeli forces have also "deliberately killed and inflicted serious bodily and mental harm against children in the West Bank as they have in Gaza committing age-based persecution against Palestinian children." (ANI)
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