NEW YORK (Palestine Foundation Information Center) A United Nations inquiry has found that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza through a “systematic campaign to destroy Palestinian life,” including attacks on civilians sheltering in schools and religious sites.
In a report released Tuesday, the UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory and Israel concluded that the Israeli occupation forces (IOF) have committed crimes against humanity, including extermination, by deliberately killing civilians in supposed safe zones.
The commission documented the destruction of over 90% of Gaza’s schools and universities, and more than half of its religious and cultural sites. Navi Pillay, chair of the commission and former UN human rights chief, said the IOF is targeting Palestinian educational and cultural life “in a systematic effort to erase Palestinian existence.”
The report also highlighted IOF and settler attacks on students and educators in the West Bank, Jerusalem, and within the Green Line, where expressions of solidarity with Gaza have led to harassment, suspension, and arrests—particularly targeting women.
The commission is set to formally present its findings to the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva on June 17.
