Former United Nations rights chief Navi Pillay, leading a three-person investigation, revealed on Tuesday that Israel is obstructing UN investigators from speaking to witnesses and victims of the October 7 Hamas attack.
The Commission of Inquiry, established by the UN Human Rights Council in May 2021, aims to probe alleged violations of international humanitarian and human rights law in Israel and the Palestinian territories.
“I am deeply concerned that individuals within Israel who are willing to share their testimonies are being denied that opportunity due to our inability to access the country,” Pillay expressed.
During a briefing to diplomats at the UN in Geneva, the investigation highlighted its focus on the Gaza conflict between Israel and Hamas since October 7.
Chris Sidoti, a member of the inquiry, lamented, “The Israeli government has not only failed to cooperate but actively impeded our efforts to gather evidence from Israeli witnesses and victims of the incidents in southern Israel.”
Recalling the Gaza war ignited by Hamas’s October 7 assault on Israel, resulting in the deaths of 1,170 individuals, predominantly civilians. The militants also took around 250 hostages, with Israel reporting 129 still held in Gaza, including 34 presumed deceased.
Israel’s retaliatory strikes have claimed the lives of at least 33,843 individuals in the Palestinian territory, predominantly women and children, as per the health ministry in Hamas-controlled Gaza.
This ongoing obstruction of the investigation raises concerns about accountability and justice in the region, as international efforts to uncover the truth face significant challenges.
