28 February 2019•Update: 28 February 2019
JERUSALEM
Philip Luther, Amnesty International’s strategy and research director for the Middle East and North Africa, has hailed a new report by a UN fact-finding commission, which found that Israel had used “excessive force” against Palestinian demonstrators in the Gaza Strip.
“This is another horrific example of the Israeli military using excessive force and live ammunition in a totally deplorable way. This is a violation of international standards,” Luther said in a statement.
In some cases, Luther asserted, Israel “committed what appear to be willful killings, constituting war crimes”.
“Today’s footage from Gaza is extremely troubling,” he said. “As violence continues to spiral out of control, the Israeli authorities must immediately rein in the military to prevent further loss of life and serious injuries.”
“While some [Palestinian] protesters may have engaged in some form of violence,” he added, “this still does not justify the use of live ammunition.”
He went on to urge the international community to halt all weapons deliveries to Israel.
“The rising toll of deaths and injuries today only serves to highlight the urgent need for an arms embargo,” he said.
In a report released earlier Thursday, a UN fact-finding commission said that Israel's deadly 2018 crackdown on Palestinian demonstrators in Gaza "may constitute war crimes or crimes against humanity".
"The commission has reasonable grounds to believe that during the Great March of Return, Israeli soldiers committed violations of international human rights and humanitarian law," the report reads in part.
According to the report, 183 Palestinians were killed by Israeli army gunfire -- including 35 children -- since demonstrations along the Gaza-Israel buffer zone first began in March of last year.
“Another 6,106 Palestinians were injured by live ammunition,” the report notes, “while a further 3,098 were hurt by shrapnel, rubber-coated bullets and/or teargas.”
