UN commission finds israel committing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza

On September 16, 2025, the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, established by the United Nations Human Rights Council, issued a significant report concluding that Israeli authorities have committed acts of genocide against Palestinians in Gaza since October 7, 2023. This finding was the result of extensive investigations carried out by experts into the human rights violations that have unfolded amid the ongoing conflict. The report identified four specific acts of genocide: the killing of group members, causing serious bodily or mental harm, inflicting conditions of life calculated to bring about physical destruction, and imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group. The context of these findings underscores the violent response of Israel following Hamas's attacks on October 7, which claimed the lives of over 1,200 Israelis and resulted in multiple hostages. In turn, Israel's military operations targeted Gaza's civilian infrastructure, leading to significant death tolls among Palestinian civilians, with reports suggesting that nearly 65,000 Palestinians have died since the onset of the conflict. The escalation in violence coincided with the imposition of blockades and restrictions on humanitarian aid, exacerbating an already dire humanitarian situation in the region. The report made clear that the actions taken by Israeli military and political leaders, including President Isaac Herzog and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, amounted to incitement of genocide, indicating that such sentiments were not merely circumstantial but had been consistently documented through their statements. As a result, Israel faces growing international condemnation, with calls for accountability and immediate cessation of military actions deemed as genocidal. Moreover, the findings have sparked debates over the moral imperative of other nations to respond to these allegations, as the Genocide Convention obligates states to prevent and punish such actions when they occur. The report urged member states of the United Nations to take concrete steps to address the situation, including ceasing arms transfers to Israel and ensuring that humanitarian aid reaches Gaza unimpeded, emphasizing that the situation may extend beyond Gaza into the broader context of occupied Palestinian territories.