The Independent Commission for Human Rights (ICHR) reiterates its warning about the escalating danger posed by the continued aggressive siege imposed by Israeli occupation forces on northern Gaza for over 30 days. This siege has reached unprecedented levels since the start of what ICHR describes as a genocidal campaign marked by killing, starvation, targeting of Civil Defense personnel leading to a complete shutdown of services, and near-total obstruction of hospitals and health facilities in the north, threatening to render them inoperable.

ICHR has followed, with grave concern, the Civil Defense’s announcement of a complete halt to services in northern Gaza due to targeted attacks on its personnel, with many injured, detained, or unable to rescue hundreds trapped under the rubble of bombed buildings. This also includes the direct targeting of Kamal Odwan Hospital, with its essential water and fuel supplies disrupted, impacting key departments. These attacks have affected children already injured by airstrikes and receiving treatment at the hospital.

ICHR considers these deliberate attacks on health and rescue services and their facilities a systematic violation that threatens lives and seeks to cause maximum casualties. In recent days alone, nearly 200 people of Abu Alnasr family were killed in a single targeted incident, highlighting what ICHR describes as a methodical policy of destruction and forced displacement of northern Gaza’s residents.

Israel, the occupying power, continues to deepen the humanitarian crisis by intensifying military operations and imposing strict restrictions on northern Gaza, preventing international organizations from carrying out vital relief services. This situation exacerbates the humanitarian crisis and reflects a systematic policy aimed at undermining essential life resources. Various UN bodies, special rapporteurs, and international organizations have repeatedly voiced concerns over the severity of these violations, which represent an unprecedented challenge to international law and humanitarian values endorsed by the United Nations and its members. This situation is eroding trust in the international system, which is supposed to serve as a last resort for victims of genocide in Gaza.

In light of the ongoing genocide crimes in Gaza and continued attacks on civilians in the north, as well as the obstruction of local and international organizations, ICHR renews its demands:

• For the International Court of Justice to issue an urgent provisional order regarding the genocide case filed by South Africa.
• For the World Health Organization and the International Committee of the Red Cross to fulfill their roles and responsibilities in protecting civilians, especially hospitals, and ensuring the delivery of medical and relief aid to civilian victims in northern Gaza.
• For the Palestinian government to swiftly declare northern Gaza a disaster zone, requiring international intervention to halt Israeli violations and to fulfill its responsibilities in lifting the siege and ensuring humanitarian aid reaches all areas of Gaza.
• For third parties, including states and international organizations to take firm action against the Israeli occupation, including imposing political and economic sanctions and stopping arms supplies, as mandated by the UN General Assembly resolution issued in September