Geneva, September 18, 2025
Photo: pbs.org
A United Nations commission has determined that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza and is calling on the international community to take action to stop it and hold those responsible accountable.
The Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory and Israel, a three-member team of independent experts commissioned by the UN Human Rights Council, issued its findings Tuesday following what it described as a painstaking legal analysis of both actions and intent in Israel’s nearly two-year war in Gaza, reports the AP.
“The Commission finds that Israel is responsible for the commission of genocide in Gaza,” said commission chair Navi Pillay, a former UN rights chief who previously served as a judge on the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda. “It is clear that there is an intent to destroy the Palestinians in Gaza through acts that meet the criteria set forth in the Genocide Convention.”
The commission concluded that Israel has committed four of the five “genocidal acts” defined under the 1948 Genocide Convention:
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killing members of a group
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causing its members serious bodily or mental harm
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imposing measures aimed to prevent births in the group
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and deliberately inflicting conditions calculated to bring about the “physical destruction” of the group
Only the criterion regarding forcible transfer of children to another group was not met, according to the report.
The experts cited several factors in reaching their conclusion, including the death toll of more than 64,000 people, Israel’s “total siege” of Gaza and blockade of humanitarian aid that has led to starvation, a policy of “systematically destroying” the health care system, and direct targeting of children.
The commission determined that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, President Isaac Herzog, and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant had incited the commission of genocide, though it has not assessed whether other Israeli leaders had done so as well.
Commission member Chris Sidoti said Israeli citizens had been “betrayed” by their government’s “abject refusal” to take action to rescue Israeli hostages after 1,200 people were killed on October 7, 2023, and its “genocidal war” that has jeopardized Israel’s security.
Israel categorically rejected the findings, with its Foreign Ministry calling the report “distorted and false” and describing the commission members as “Hamas proxies” with “openly antisemitic positions.” Genocide accusations are particularly sensitive in Israel, which was founded as a haven for Jews following the Holocaust.
The commission has called on countries to halt weapons transfers to Israel and block individuals or companies from actions that could contribute to genocide in Gaza. “The international community cannot stay silent on the genocidal campaign launched by Israel against the Palestinian people in Gaza,” Pillay said.
While neither the commission nor the UN Human Rights Council can take direct action against a country, the findings could be used by prosecutors at the International Criminal Court or the UN’s International Court of Justice, which is currently hearing a genocide case filed by South Africa against Israel.
The commission was created four years ago and has repeatedly documented alleged human rights abuses in Gaza since the 2023 Hamas-led attacks in Israel. All three commission members announced in July that they would resign, citing personal reasons and a need for change, making this report their final message.
Israel has refused to cooperate with the commission and has accused it and the Human Rights Council of anti-Israel bias. The Trump administration pulled the United States out of the council earlier this year.
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