The Expansion of the Israeli Military Offensive and the Continued Brutal Massacres Amid a Catastrophic Famine and Humanitarian Collapse Requires Serious Arab and International Action to Save Gaza’s Population Before It’s Too Late

Date: May 17, 2025

Press Release

The Expansion of the Israeli Military Offensive and the Continued Brutal Massacres Amid a Catastrophic Famine and Humanitarian Collapse Requires Serious Arab and International Action to Save Gaza’s Population Before It’s Too Late

The International Commission to Support Palestinian Rights (ICSPR) is following with great concern and strong condemnation the escalation of massacres against civilians and the acts of genocide perpetrated by the Israeli occupation forces in the Gaza Strip. These crimes are being carried out through a scorched-earth policy, systematic bombardment, and the comprehensive destruction of residential neighborhoods, infrastructure, shelters, and health and humanitarian service systems. In addition, more forced displacement orders have been issued to tens of thousands of displaced persons, who are being targeted even while attempting to flee. This confirms Israel’s blatant disregard for the rules of international humanitarian law, human rights standards, and the precautionary measures issued by the International Court of Justice (ICJ), as well as its indifference to international condemnations and efforts aimed at halting the genocide and ensuring the flow of humanitarian aid—blocked now for 77 consecutive days due to the closure of Gaza’s crossings. These actions exacerbate the catastrophic famine and humanitarian collapse on a daily basis, and further prove the insistence of the fascist and racist Israeli government on securing its survival at the expense of Palestinian blood and rights. This comes in the context of continuing its declared plans by extending the aggression to the West Bank and Jerusalem to consolidate colonial annexation and Judaization, alongside ongoing genocidal crimes and the systematic destruction and forced displacement of Gaza’s population outside the occupied Palestinian territories.

According to ICSPR’s documentation, the Israeli occupation forces have killed more than 115 people in less than 12 hours in northern Gaza, due to direct attacks on dozens of homes and shelters in Jabalia and Beit Lahia. Dozens of bodies remain trapped under the rubble, while rescue teams are unable to reach them. ICSPR also documented the targeting of civilians attempting to flee from Beit Lahia and the “Izbat Abed Rabbo” area, resulting in the deaths of dozens of people, including women and children. Meanwhile, massacres continue throughout the Gaza Strip, raising the total death toll of the genocide to around 53,119 martyrs whose bodies have reached hospitals, in addition to about 14,000 missing under the rubble, and 120,214 injured, of whom women and children constitute approximately 70%. Additionally, there is a deliberate destruction of previously partially damaged buildings, now being completely leveled. Entire neighborhoods in Rafah and Khan Younis continue to be erased with the involvement of Israeli civil companies. These practices are a practical implementation of statements made by Israeli Prime Minister and war criminal Benjamin Netanyahu, who declared that the destruction of Gaza aims to forcibly displace its population.

ICSPR confirms that the occupation continues to commit genocidal crimes against journalists, with the death toll among journalists now reaching 217 martyrs. This includes the recent assassinations of journalist Ahmad Anwar Abdelhadi Al-Helou, a designer and editor at Quds News Network, and journalist Hassan Marzouq Samour. These crimes represent a continuation of efforts to target journalists and prevent them from documenting and exposing Israeli crimes. They constitute complex war crimes and a grave violation of the Fourth Geneva Convention, UN Security Council Resolution 2222, the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, and the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, all of which provide special protection for journalists during armed conflicts.

ICSPR further notes that the occupation forces continue targeting hospitals and healthcare centers, rendering them inoperable. Al-Awda Hospital was recently subjected to intense shelling, causing severe damage, and the occupation issued evacuation orders for the Sheikh Radwan Clinic. This follows the bombing of the European Hospital in Khan Younis and Nasser Hospital days earlier, raising the total number of hospitals put out of service to 36, in addition to the destruction of dozens of clinics and medical centers, and the killing of approximately 1,800 medical personnel. These actions confirm Israel’s deliberate intent to destroy the healthcare system and obstruct the provision of life-saving medical services, in flagrant violation of the Fourth Geneva Convention and the Rome Statute.

The occupation continues its total closure of all border crossings, preventing the entry of food, medicine, and fuel for the 77th consecutive day, leading to the shutdown of bakeries and food kitchens, and a severe shortage of food supplies. The famine has reached phase five of food insecurity, posing an imminent threat to the lives of thousands of children, women, patients, and the elderly. These policies represent a form of starvation warfare, which is classified as a war crime and crime against humanity under international law.

The International Commission to Support Palestinian Rights (ICSPR) reiterates its condemnation of the brutal Israeli massacres, the deliberate targeting of civilians, and the destruction of both private and public properties in Gaza using deadly weapons, as well as the use of humanitarian aid as a weapon of war. ICSPR appreciates the European and Arab positions and statements opposing the crime of genocide and warns of the dangers of expanding the Israeli military offensive on Gaza and implementing the so-called “Gideon Wagons Plan”, which seeks broader ground invasion, while continuing to block aid and proposing a U.S.-Israeli plan to militarize aid distribution. This plan seeks to ban UNRWA’s work and hinder the operations of other international organizations. At the same time, ICSPR holds the Israeli occupation and the U.S. administration fully responsible for the genocide and collective punishment crimes against Palestinian civilians. These crimes constitute grave and blatant violations of international humanitarian law, the Genocide Convention, the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, ICJ measures, and UN resolutions. ICSPR also renews its condemnation of the ongoing international and Arab failure to stop the massacres and violations, which has emboldened the occupation to proceed with its aggressive policies without deterrence. ICSPR warns of the dangers of further military escalation, the accompanying forced evacuation orders, the prevention of aid entry, and plans to control humanitarian aid and obstruct the work of international organizations in an attempt to complete a new chapter of the Nakba through the mass expulsion of Gaza’s population.

Accordingly, ICSPR calls and demands the following:

• ICSPR: Calls for intensified official and popular international efforts to halt the genocide in Gaza, ensure the entry of humanitarian, medical, and relief aid, impose political, economic, and military sanctions on the occupying state, halt arms exports to it, and hold its leaders and accomplices accountable before international courts.

• ICSPR: Urges the Arab League Summit, the European Union, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, and other international and regional organizations to implement their previous decisions to stop the Israeli aggression, provide international protection and support for Palestinians, and to implement the Egyptian recovery and reconstruction plan.