Geneva: The UN Human Rights Office has cited possible war crimes by Israeli forces and Palestinian armed groups in connection with a raid at the urban Nuseirat refugee camp, where four hostages were rescued over the weekend and at least 274 Palestinians were killed. Jeremy Laurence, the spokesperson of the office, expressed concerns about possible violations of rules of proportionality, distinction and precaution by the Israeli forces in Saturday’s deadly raid.
"We are profoundly shocked at the impact on civilians of the Israeli forces’ operation in An Nuseirat at the weekend to secure the release of four hostages. Hundreds of Palestinians, many of them civilians, were reportedly killed and injured. The manner in which the raid was conducted in such a densely populated area seriously calls into question whether the principles of distinction, proportionality and precaution - as set out under the laws of war - were respected by the Israeli forces," Laurence told a regular UN briefing today.
Additionally, Laurence said Palestinian armed groups who are holding hostages in densely populated areas are putting the lives of nearby civilians and the hostages at “added risks” from the hostilities, which was in violation of international humanitarian law. “All these actions by both parties may amount to war crimes,” he told a regular UN briefing in Geneva.
Alluding to the “ordeal” faced by hostages and their families, he said: “The fact that four hostages are now free is clearly very good news. These hostages should never have been taken in the first place. That’s a breach of international humanitarian law. They must be freed. All of them. Promptly.”
Hostages rescue at Nuseirat camp
Israeli forces rescued four hostages held by Hamas since October in a raid in Gaza on Saturday that Palestinian officials said killed more than 200 people, one of the single bloodiest Israeli assaults of the eight-month-old war. The hostage rescue operation and an intense accompanying air assault took place in central Gaza's al-Nuseirat, a densely built-up and often embattled area in the conflict between Israel and Hamas, the Palestinian territory's ruling Islamist group.
Israel named the rescued hostages as Noa Argamani, 26, Almog Meir Jan, 22, Andrey Kozlov, 27, and Shlomi Ziv, 41. They were taken to hospital for medical checks and were in good health, the military said. They were all kidnapped from the Nova music festival during the deadly raid by Hamas-led Palestinian militants on Israeli towns and villages near Gaza on October 7.
However, the large death count of Palestinians threatened to stall the months-long negotiations mediated by the US, Qatar and Egypt. Nuseirat, a historic Palestinian refugee camp, has been subjected to heavy Israeli bombing during the war and there has also been fierce ground fighting in its eastern areas.
UNSC backs Israel-Hamas ceasefire plan
Meanwhile, the United Nations Security Council on Monday overwhelmingly approved a resolution endorsing a ceasefire plan between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip that calls on Palestinian militants to accept the deal aimed at ending the eight-month war. The proposal was outlined by US President Joe Biden, who described it as an Israeli initiative, and the resolution was adopted in a 14-1 vote in its favour.
Hamas accepted the UN Security Council ceasefire resolution and is ready to negotiate over the details, senior Hamas official Sami Abu Zuhri told Reuters on Tuesday, adding that it was up to Washington to ensure that Israel abides by it. Hamas accepts the UN security council resolution in regard to the ceasefire, withdrawal of Israeli troops and swap of hostages for detainees held by Israel, he said.
"The High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, welcomes Security Council Resolution 2735 calling for a "full and complete ceasefire", the release of hostages held by Palestinian armed groups, the return of the remains of dead hostages, and the exchange of Palestinian prisoners. An immediate priority must be to ensure the full and unfettered flow of humanitarian aid to the desperate population of Gaza," said Laurence on Tuesday.
(with inputs from agencies)
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