HRW: Israel has bombed over 500 schools sheltering displaced people in Gaza since October 2023
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Human Rights Watch (HRW) has confirmed that Israel has bombed more than 500 schools sheltering displaced people across the Gaza Strip since October 2023.
In a statement issued on Thursday, the organisation said: “Since October 2023, Israeli authorities have carried out hundreds of strikes on schools sheltering displaced Palestinians, including unlawfully indiscriminate attacks using US munitions, that have killed hundreds of civilians and damaged or destroyed virtually all of Gaza’s schools.”
The rights organisation warned of the long-term consequences of the attacks, particularly on civilians and the education system, stating: “The Israeli attacks have denied civilians safe access to shelter and will contribute to the disruption of access to education for many years, as repair and reconstruction of schools can require significant resources and time.
The latest Israeli airstrikes on schools used as shelters form part of the ongoing military offensive, which has destroyed much of Gaza’s remaining civilian infrastructure, displaced hundreds of thousands of Palestinians, and further worsened an already dire humanitarian situation, according to the HRW statement.
The organisation demanded that “Governments- including the United States- which has provided weapons used in unlawful attacks, should impose an arms embargo on the Israeli government and take other urgent measures to enforce the United Nations Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (Genocide Convention).”
READ: UN says over 100 doctors barred from Gaza since March amid worsening crisis
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