ICSPR: Escalating Occupation Crimes and Forcible Displacement in Gaza and the West Bank Require Serious International Intervention and the Provision of International Protection for Palestinians

Date: 8 September 202

Press Release

ICSPR: Escalating Occupation Crimes and Forcible Displacement in Gaza and the West Bank Require Serious International Intervention and the Provision of International Protection for Palestinians

The International Commission to Support Palestinian Rights (ICSPR) condemns in the strongest terms the continued and escalating violations and crimes committed by Israeli occupation forces against Palestinian civilians in the Gaza Strip, the West Bank, and occupied Jerusalem. These include killings and the direct targeting of civilians, bombardment, forcible displacement, destruction of property and civilian infrastructure, and restrictions imposed on people’s access to essential services and humanitarian needs.

The Commission affirms that the successive facts on the ground during the past 72 hours clearly demonstrate that the ceasefire has not provided effective and sustainable protection for civilians. Israeli military operations, bombardment, gunfire, and the targeting of civilians have continued, aggravating the dangers facing Palestinian residents and undermining any possibility of achieving a genuine calm unless it is accompanied by binding and effective mechanisms to protect civilians and hold those responsible for violations accountable.

During the past three days, the Gaza Strip witnessed a series of grave crimes and violations, including the targeting of civilians, populated areas, and shelter centers. Occupation forces targeted a civilian vehicle near the Hamid Junction in the al-Nasr neighborhood west of Gaza City, killing Yousef Aqila and his nine-year-old daughter, Wafaa Aqila, on the first day of the school year, and injuring six others. A motorcycle was also targeted by a drone in the al-Mawasi area west of Khan Younis, killing two people and injuring others. A group of civilians west of Khan Younis was targeted by occupation aircraft. The Commission also recorded several fighter-jet airstrikes and artillery shelling in several areas, including the al-Rimal and al-Tuffah neighborhoods, the vicinity of the American School west of Gaza City, and northeast of al-Bureij refugee camp.

A school sheltering displaced persons in Deir al-Balah was also bombarded, killing a child and causing a number of injuries. This constitutes a grave violation of the inviolability of shelter sites to which civilians flee to escape bombardment and military operations. In a related context, attacks against Palestinian fishermen off the coast of Gaza continued, with gunfire by the Israeli navy injuring three fishermen, further intensifying restrictions on livelihoods and access to sources of food and income.

The Commission affirms that these incidents cannot be regarded as isolated events. They take place within a broader context of the continued use of excessive force against civilians, restrictions on movement, and the destruction of the foundations of life. This aggravates the humanitarian crisis and deepens the consequences of the displacement and widespread destruction suffered by the Gaza Strip as a result of the war of genocide.

According to the latest update issued by the Gaza Ministry of Health on 7 September 2026, the number of martyrs since 7 October 2023 has reached 73,658, while the number of injured persons has reached 174,622. Since the announcement of the ceasefire, the number of martyrs has reached 1,352, with 4,511 injuries, while 826 bodies have been recovered. Thousands of victims remain under the rubble and on the roads, while the continued prevention of the entry of heavy machinery and civil defense equipment creates immense challenges that obstruct ambulance and rescue crews from recovering the bodies of martyrs from beneath the rubble.

Humanitarian consequences are also worsening due to the continuing fuel crisis and shortages of medical supplies, along with the declining ability of hospitals to provide vital services. Restrictions on patients traveling outside the Gaza Strip for treatment also continue. According to available health data, 21,331 patients face serious health risks because they are unable to access treatment outside the Strip, while only 5,245 patients have been able to travel for treatment since July 2024.

In the West Bank and occupied Jerusalem, Israeli crimes and violations continue in parallel with what is taking place in the Gaza Strip, within a context that threatens Palestinian existence and undermines the foundations of life and stability. This includes the continued prevention of residents of the Jenin, Tulkarm, and Nur Shams refugee camps from returning to their residential areas following destruction affecting homes, infrastructure, and water and electricity networks. This raises serious concerns about the continuation of policies of forced transfer and forcible displacement.

Settler attacks against Palestinians and their property also continue, alongside raids, arrests, restrictions on movement, ongoing demolitions of homes and structures, and land confiscation, particularly in areas classified as Area C. These are compounded by attacks and restrictions in occupied Jerusalem, including at the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Ibrahimi Mosque, as well as continued pressure on educational and humanitarian institutions.

The International Commission to Support Palestinian Rights (ICSPR) considers that the continuation of these crimes and violations in Gaza, the West Bank, and Jerusalem confirms a determination to violate the rules of international humanitarian law, deprive residents of the occupied territory of their humanitarian and national rights, and undermine the inalienable right to self-determination.

Accordingly, the International Commission to Support Palestinian Rights (ICSPR) calls for the following:

1. The international community, particularly the United Nations and States Parties to the Geneva Conventions, must assume their legal and political responsibilities, impose sanctions on the Israeli occupying power, and take all measures necessary to ensure a permanent end to the war of genocide; hold perpetrators of crimes accountable; lift the restrictions and siege imposed on the Gaza Strip; ensure the safe, adequate, and sustained flow of humanitarian aid, fuel, water, food, medicines, medical supplies, rescue equipment, and debris-removal equipment; and provide urgent and effective international protection for Palestinian civilians in the Gaza Strip, the West Bank, and occupied Jerusalem, including children, women, displaced persons, and humanitarian, medical, and civil defense personnel. They must also ensure that patients and wounded persons can access treatment, including by allowing medical evacuation for cases requiring treatment unavailable within the Gaza Strip, without obstruction or unjustified delay.

2. ICSPR calls for an end to policies of forcible displacement and the prevention of return to residential areas; an end to home demolitions, land confiscation, settlement expansion, and settler attacks carried out under the protection of occupation forces; and the activation of accountability and criminal prosecution mechanisms against those responsible for violations and grave international crimes committed against Palestinians. The Commission urges the International Criminal Court and competent international judicial bodies to expedite investigations into crimes committed in the occupied Palestinian territory and ensure that their perpetrators do not escape punishment.

3. ICSPR calls on free people around the world to act through all forms of solidarity and advocacy and to pressure governments to fulfill their moral and legal duties to provide international protection for Palestinians and guarantee their right to self-determination.