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The UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) has strongly condemned the repeated use of lethal force by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) against Palestinians attempting to access food aid in Gaza, describing the killings as “senseless” and “unlawful.”
In a statement released Wednesday, the OHCHR highlighted several recent incidents in which Palestinians were killed or injured while queuing at food distribution points. On June 17 alone, at least 51 people were reported killed and over 200 injured. A day earlier, three more deaths were recorded. Despite claims by the IDF of firing only warning shots, OHCHR reports indicate that more than 400 Palestinians have been killed in similar contexts since May 27.
As civil infrastructure continues to collapse, the OHCHR warned that Gaza residents now face “the inhumane choice of dying from starvation or risking being shot while seeking food.” The office emphasized that under international humanitarian law, Israel, as an occupying power, has a legal obligation to ensure access to food, medical care, and other life-sustaining services for the civilian population. It added that intentionally impeding such access or attacking civilians attempting to obtain aid may constitute war crimes and violations of the Genocide Convention.
In a related statement, the UN World Food Programme (WFP) described the situation as dire, calling for an urgent scale-up in food deliveries. The WFP stated it had only been able to distribute 9,000 metric tons of food in Gaza—insufficient for a population of 2.1 million. It condemned any violence that results in the deaths of civilians seeking food and called on Israeli authorities to allow humanitarian agencies to operate safely and without obstruction.
Meanwhile, the Israeli navy’s recent interception and deportation of the crew of the humanitarian ship Madleen, including Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg, has drawn further international condemnation. Countries including Türkiye, France, the UK, Brazil, and Iran, as well as several humanitarian organizations, criticized the action as a breach of international law. Rights advocates argue that the incident reflects broader patterns of systemic human rights violations against Palestinians.
Excerpts from jurist.com article by Lilian Trickey | University of Oxford, Faculty of Law
