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UN rights chief says Israeli bulldozers continue levelling Gaza ‘with no respect for the dead’

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Palestinians are seen as the Israeli forces placed new yellow concrete blocks at the Sanfura junction continuing to expand the area known as the “Yellow Line” despite the ceasefire in western Gaza City, Gaza, Palestine, on July 27, 2026. [Ali Jadallah – Anadolu Agency]

The UN human rights chief said on Tuesday that many areas in Gaza continue to be levelled by Israeli bulldozers, criticizing the lack of respect for the dead under the rubble, Anadolu reports.

“Much of Gaza has been flattened by Israeli bombing or demolition and clearing by heavy machinery and explosives. Today, many areas in Gaza where the Israeli military is deployed continue to be levelled by bulldozers with no respect for the dead under the rubble,” Volker Turk said in a written statement.

While underlining that the remains of “what appears to be entire families” are being unearthed, he voiced concern that what is being uncovered “may only be the tip of the iceberg.”

Turk stressed the need to preserve evidence of violations amid ongoing legal proceedings related to hostilities in Gaza and called for international investigators to be granted access to all parts of the territory to assist in gathering evidence.

Around 8,000 Palestinian bodies are believed to be trapped under the rubble in the Gaza Strip, while civil defense authorities report that over 630 bodies and other human remains had been recovered between November 2025 and September 2026.

“Every feasible effort must be taken to document and identify these victims, preserve forensic information and biological samples, record their burial locations and inform their families,” Turk underscored.

READ: UN rapporteur warns Israeli rubble-clearing in Gaza could erase evidence of atrocity crimes

He further stressed that the “painstaking recovery efforts” reflected the “gravity and breadth of the destruction three years ago, compounded today by the prolonged suffering and misery brought by years of not knowing.”

Turk recalled his concerns over Israel’s conduct of hostilities, including its extensive use of explosive weapons in densely populated areas, which he said failed to effectively distinguish between civilians and fighters.

“The discovery of extensive remains under the rubble in Gaza City resurfaces these concerns of war crimes and other atrocity crimes,” he added.

Turk also stressed Israel’s obligations under international law to search for and account for missing people and recover the dead, while noting that recovering and burying victims does not replace the need to establish the circumstances of their deaths.

“The reported killing of large numbers of family members, including children, women and persons with disabilities, in attacks on residential buildings raises grave concerns regarding compliance with the rules governing the conduct of hostilities,” he said.

He also called for effective investigations into the attacks and for those responsible to be held accountable.

“I urge all States to press for greater cooperation and coordination to ensure the recovery of bodies across all of Gaza in a dignified and humane way,” Turk further noted.

READ: Israeli army chief orders investigation into documentary revealing AI-assisted Gaza strikes

This work by Middle East Monitor is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

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