Gaza Herald- Human Rights Watch (HRW) revealed that over 500 school buildings were destroyed during the Israeli genocidal war on Gaza, where displaced people had taken refuge.
The Israeli military has “illegally and indiscriminately” used US munitions to attack school shelters in Gaza, killing hundreds of people, HRW said.
Israel has frequently said its strikes on school facilities in Gaza target embedded Hamas fighters. But HRW said it only found seven instances where the military published details of alleged militants killed, and highlighted two strikes, which killed nearly 50 people, where they found no evidence of any military target.
Such attacks would violate international law because schools and other educational facilities are civilian objects and protected from attack, HRW said. They lose that protection when used for military purposes or are occupied by military forces. But the use of schools to house civilians does not alter their legal status.
‘Horrendous slaughter of Palestinians’
HRW called on the US and other governments to halt arms sales to Israel, given the “clear risk” that weapons might be used to commit or facilitate “serious violations” of international humanitarian law.” Washington’s supply of arms to Israel has made the US “complicit” in their unlawful use, the group said.
“Israeli strikes on schools sheltering displaced families provide a window into the widespread carnage that Israeli forces have carried out in Gaza,” Gerry Simpson, associate crisis, conflict and arms director at HRW, said in the report.
“Other governments should not tolerate this horrendous slaughter of Palestinians merely seeking safety,” added Simpson.
