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Israel condemned as “disgraceful” a formal declaration by the world’s top genocide scholars, accusing it of committing genocide in Gaza. Israel rejected the charge, calling it an “embarrassment to the legal profession” and based on misinformation spread by Hamas.
The International Association of Genocide Scholars (IAGS) passed a resolution this week stating that Israel’s conduct in Gaza over the past 22 months meets the legal definition of genocide under the 1948 United Nations Convention. Eighty-six percent of voting members supported the resolution.
Why It Matters
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Since Hamas’ October 2023 attack on Israel, which killed 1,200 people and left about 250 hostages, more than 63,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza. Nearly all Gazans have been displaced at least once, with most buildings damaged or destroyed. A U.N.-backed body has declared the enclave in famine—an assessment Israel rejects.
What to Know
Israel’s Foreign Ministry said the IAGS resolution was “entirely based on Hamas’s lies and the laundering of those lies by others.” The ministry accused the academic body of failing to verify basic facts. It also claimed that IAGS flipped moral roles in the conflict, despite acknowledging Hamas’ criminal act.
The ministry stated: “Above all, the IAGS has set a historic precedent—for the first time, ‘Genocide Scholars’ accuse the very victim of genocide.” This refers to Israel’s military response, which the IAGS said targeted not just Hamas fighters but Gaza’s entire civilian population. The resolution cited deliberate attacks on civilians, including children, starvation and forced displacement, and systematic destruction of hospitals, schools, and housing.
What the Genocide Scholars Said
The International Association of Genocide Scholars passed a three-page resolution listing acts that it deemed “deliberate attacks” on Gaza’s civilian population and infrastructure. These included starvation, forced displacement, destruction of healthcare and education systems, and the killing of civilians—especially children—which together amount to genocide.
What People Are Saying
Agnes Callamard, Secretary General of Amnesty International, tweeted: “An overwhelming majority of members of the world’s leading genocide scholars’ association have backed a resolution stating that Israel’s actions in Gaza meet the legal definition of the crime.”
Andrew Mark Bennett, a doctoral candidate at Freie Universität Berlin, commented on X: “The International Association of Genocide Scholars remained silent after the Oct 7 genocide and said nothing about the largest mass murder of Jews since the Holocaust.”
What Happens Next
The genocide declaration comes as Israel intensifies preparations for Gaza City. Prime Minister Netanyahu stated that Israel will resume negotiations for the release of hostages, but only under terms it deems acceptable.
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