Nineteen kids had been killed in occupied Palestinian territory within the final week alone, the UN human rights chief stated.
Virtually 40 Palestinian kids have been killed to date this yr within the occupied territories and in lots of incidents, Israeli forces seem to make use of deadly drive in a fashion that violates worldwide human rights regulation, UN Excessive Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet stated.
The United Nations rights chief issued an announcement on Thursday expressing “alarm” on the giant numbers of Palestinians – significantly kids – who’ve been killed and injured by Israeli forces in occupied Palestinian territory to date this yr.
“Inflicting harm on any little one through the course of battle is deeply disturbing, and the killing and maiming of so many kids this yr is unconscionable,” Bachelet stated in an announcement.
Nineteen Palestinian kids had been killed in occupied Palestinian territory within the final week alone, bringing the dying toll of youngsters because the begin of the yr to 37, based on the assertion.
Seventeen of the youngsters had been killed throughout final weekend’s attacks on Gaza by Israeli forces, and two extra kids had been killed on Tuesday in Israeli operations within the occupied West Financial institution.
Israeli forces launched their bombardment of Gaza, flattening buildings and hanging refugee camps throughout the territory, saying the onslaught focused members of the Islamic Jihad armed group, together with the group’s senior commanders. Palestinian officers stated the vast majority of these killed had been civilians.
The toll of civilian casualties within the Israeli assault on Gaza “was heavy”, the UN rights chief stated.
“Worldwide humanitarian regulation is obvious. Launching an assault which can be anticipated to accidentally kill or injure civilians, or harm civilian objects, in disproportionate method to the concrete and direct army benefit anticipated, is prohibited. Such assaults should cease,” Bachelet stated.
The UN human rights workplace has confirmed that among the many 48 Palestinians killed within the three-day onslaught from Friday to Sunday, at least 22 were civilians, including 17 children and four women.
Almost two-thirds of the 360 Palestinians reported injured within the Israeli offensive had been civilians, together with 151 kids, 58 ladies and 19 older folks, the UN stated.
‘Local weather of impunity’
Kids additionally accounted for almost all of casualties in plenty of Israeli strikes that had additionally hit “civilian objects, inflicting civilian casualties and harm to civilian objects”, the UN chief stated within the assertion.
Palestinian armed teams additionally indiscriminately fired a whole bunch of rockets and mortars at Israel over the weekend, injuring civilians and damaging civilian infrastructure and property, the UN chief stated, including that such assaults had been additionally a “violation of worldwide humanitarian regulation”.

Israeli authorities stated {that a} complete of 70 Israelis had been injured throughout weekend preventing.
Bachelet additionally stated that the widespread use of reside ammunition by Israeli forces in regulation enforcement operations within the occupied West Financial institution, together with East Jerusalem, had led to an alarming number of Palestinians being killed.
The UN Human Rights Workplace within the occupied Palestinian territory has to date this yr documented the killing of 74 Palestinians, together with 20 kids. In lots of incidents, Israeli forces used deadly drive in a fashion that seemed to be in violation of worldwide human rights regulation, she added.
Bachelet additionally referred to as for fast, impartial, neutral, and clear investigations into all incidents the place any particular person was killed or injured, and she or he lamented what she described as a “local weather of impunity” and “the long-standing violations” that powered “the cycle of violence” within the occupied territories.
She stated that “An virtually complete lack of accountability persists within the occupied Palestinian territory – whether for violations of worldwide humanitarian regulation by all events in hostilities in Gaza, or for recurring Israeli violations of worldwide human rights regulation and the regulation of occupation within the West Financial institution, together with East Jerusalem, together with incidents of pointless and disproportionate use of drive.”