UN office ‘deeply shocked’ by deaths during Gaza hostage rescue

The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights said war crimes may have been committed in connection with the rescue of Israeli hostages in the Gaza Strip over the weekend, in part because of the high number of victims on the Palestinian side.

“We are deeply shocked by the impact on civilians of the operation of Israeli forces in An Nuseirat this weekend to obtain the release of four hostages,” said the office in Geneva, questioning respect for the principles of international humanitarian law.

The way the mission was carried out was “catastrophic … because civilians were caught in the middle,” office spokesman Jeremy Laurence said.

War crimes could also have been committed on the Palestinian side, he added. These include the detention of hostages in a densely populated area, which, in the event of conflict, endangers the lives of hostages and Palestinian civilians.

According to the health authority controlled by Islamist Hamas, more than 270 people were killed Saturday in the Nuseirat refugee camp during the operation to free four Israeli hostages.

The hostages were kidnapped in Israel during the October 7 terrorist attack.