UN Commission Accuses Israel of Committing Genocide in Gaza

Geneva, September 17, 2025 – A United Nations Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory has concluded that Israel is committing genocide against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, according to a report released on Tuesday, September 16, 2025. The commission, established by the UN Human Rights Council in 2021, described its findings as the “most authoritative UN finding to date” on the ongoing conflict, which began following Hamas-led attacks on Israel on October 7, 2023. Israel has categorically rejected the report, labeling it “distorted and false.”

The 72-page report alleges that Israeli authorities and security forces have committed four of the five acts defined as genocide under the 1948 Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide. These include killing members of the group, causing serious bodily or mental harm, deliberately inflicting conditions of life calculated to bring about the physical destruction of Palestinians, and imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group. The commission found no evidence of the fifth act, the forcible transfer of children to another group.

Chaired by Navi Pillay, a former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and judge at the International Criminal Court, the commission cited extensive evidence, including interviews with victims and witnesses, verified open-source documents, and satellite imagery. The report points to the scale of killings—over 64,000 Palestinians, including more than 18,000 children and nearly 10,000 women, according to Gaza health officials—along with the destruction of healthcare and education systems, attacks on cultural and religious sites, and a total siege blocking humanitarian aid, leading to famine in parts of Gaza. The commission also highlighted the destruction of Gaza’s largest fertility clinic, Al-Basma IVF, in December 2023, which destroyed approximately 4,000 embryos and 1,000 sperm samples.

“Genocide is occurring in Gaza,” Pillay stated at a press conference in Geneva. “The responsibility for these atrocity crimes lies with Israeli authorities at the highest echelons who have orchestrated a genocidal campaign for almost two years now with the specific intent to destroy the Palestinian group in Gaza.” The report specifically names Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, and President Isaac Herzog, citing statements such as Gallant’s description of Palestinians as “human animals” and Netanyahu’s comparison of the Gaza operation to a biblical “holy war of total annihilation” as evidence of genocidal intent.

The commission concluded that Israel’s actions demonstrate “no intention to alleviate the suffering of the Palestinians” and that the state has failed to prevent or punish genocidal acts, in violation of its obligations under the Genocide Convention. It urged Israel and all UN member states to implement an immediate ceasefire, allow unhindered humanitarian access, and cease arms transfers that could contribute to genocidal acts. “The international community cannot stay silent on the genocidal campaign launched by Israel against the Palestinian people in Gaza,” Pillay said. “When clear signs and evidence of genocide emerge, the absence of action to stop it amounts to complicity.”

Israel’s Foreign Ministry swiftly denounced the report, calling it a “libellous rant” reliant on “Hamas falsehoods” and accusing the commission of anti-Israel bias. “Israel categorically rejects this distorted and false report and calls for the immediate abolition of this Commission of Inquiry,” the ministry stated. Israel’s permanent representative to the UN, Daniel Meron, described the findings as “scandalous” and accused the commission of serving as “Hamas proxies.” Israel maintains that its military operations in Gaza are a legitimate response to the October 7, 2023, Hamas attacks, which killed approximately 1,200 people and saw 251 taken hostage.

The commission’s findings, while significant, do not represent the official position of the United Nations, as the panel operates independently. UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk has not accused Israel of genocide, stating that only an international court can make a formal determination. However, the report’s conclusions align with growing accusations from human rights groups, including Amnesty International and Israeli organizations like B’Tselem, as well as a resolution by the International Association of Genocide Scholars. South Africa has also brought a genocide case against Israel before the International Court of Justice (ICJ), which in January 2024 ordered Israel to take measures to prevent genocidal acts in Gaza.

The report’s release coincided with Israel’s launch of a ground offensive in Gaza City, prompting warnings from the UN about the risk of forcibly displacing the area’s 1 million residents. The commission expressed concern that Israel’s actions may extend to the West Bank, where similar patterns of violence and destruction could emerge. It called for further investigations and urged states to exert diplomatic, economic, and political pressure to halt the violence.

While the commission lacks enforcement powers, its findings could influence prosecutors at the ICJ or the International Criminal Court, where Netanyahu and Gallant already face arrest warrants for war crimes. The report has intensified international pressure on Israel, with several European countries announcing plans to recognize Palestinian statehood at the UN General Assembly later this month. However, analysts note that genocide determinations alone are unlikely to alter Israel’s military strategy without concerted global action.

As the conflict approaches its two-year mark, the commission’s report underscores the deepening humanitarian crisis in Gaza, where life expectancy has plummeted from 75 to just over 40 years, according to a 2025 study in *The Lancet*. The international community now faces mounting calls to act on what the commission describes as a “moral outrage and a legal emergency.”