For first time, two leading Israeli human rights groups accuse Israel of genocide in Gaza

A pair of leading Israeli human rights groups has accused Israel of “committing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza,” becoming the first such organizations to make the claim.

B’Tselem said in a major report released on Monday that it came to that “unequivocal conclusion” after an “examination of Israel’s policy in the Gaza Strip and its horrific outcomes, together with statements by senior Israeli politicians and military commanders about the goals of the attack.”

Israeli government spokesman David Mencer dismissed the report. “We have free speech in this country but we strongly reject this claim,” he told reporters, adding that Israel has allowed aid into Gaza.

Israel’s foreign ministry also rejected the report, calling it “politically motivated” and dismissing the accusations as “obscene” and “baseless.” It asserted that Israel only targets Hamas, not civilians, and takes “extensive measures” to avoid harming civilians while delivering aid.

The Israeli military also called the allegations in the report “entirely unfounded” and pushed back on the allegations of deliberately starving the civilian population.

“The IDF is allowing the entry of humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip in line with the Government’s directives, and allows international organizations to carry out its distribution,” the military in a statement.