Francesca Albanese, the United Nations Special Rapporteur for the Palestinian Territories, has accused Israel of “genocide” following an airstrike on a school sheltering displaced persons in Gaza, which resulted in the deaths of around 100 people on Saturday.
In a statement posted on social media platform X, Albanese, an Italian national, wrote: “Israel has committed genocide against the Palestinians, one neighborhood after another, one hospital after another, one school after another, one refugee camp after another, and one safe zone after another.”
The death toll from the Israeli strike on the school in Gaza City, initially reported at 40, has risen to between 90 and 100, according to Mahmoud Basal, a spokesperson for Gaza’s Civil Defense.
He also mentioned that dozens of others were injured in the attack, which involved three Israeli missiles striking the school where Palestinian refugees were taking shelter. The Government Media Office in Gaza confirmed that “more than 100 martyrs” were killed in the airstrike.
Back in March, Albanese had already declared that she believed the Israeli military campaign in Gaza, which began on October 7, amounted to genocide. She urged the international community to impose sanctions and an arms embargo on Israel immediately.
According to the Hamas-run Ministry of Health, the ongoing Israeli assault on Gaza has resulted in approximately 40,000 deaths in the besieged Palestinian territory, where nearly all of the 2.4 million residents have been displaced.
Presenting her report titled “Dissecting Genocide” before the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva, Albanese stated: “It is my official duty to report the worst that humanity can do, and to present my findings.”
She further noted: “I find there are reasonable grounds to believe that the threshold for committing the crime of genocide against Palestinians as a group in Gaza has been met,” highlighting the deaths of over 30,000 Palestinians.
Albanese called on “member states to fulfill their obligations by imposing an arms embargo and sanctions on Israel, ensuring that such atrocities are not repeated in the future.”
Albanese is among dozens of independent human rights experts commissioned by the UN to report and advise on specific issues and crises. Her views do not necessarily represent the official position of the global body.
