- Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor calls on Geneva Convention signatories for the protection of Gaza civilians.
- 107,000 elderly Palestinians have been killed since October 7th by field executions or by being crushed under the debris of their homes or shelter centres.
The Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor reported a fortnight ago that the Israeli army has engaged in direct shooting operations, resulting in the execution of numerous elderly Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. This vulnerable civilian group faces a double burden, with the organisation noting that Israel has designated all residents in the Strip as targets since 7th October. According to Euro-Med Monitor, 1,049 elderly individuals, constituting about 1% of the estimated 107,000 elderly population in Gaza, have been brutally killed during the subsequent 76-days. Tragically, a significant portion of these deaths occurred as a result of being crushed under the debris of their homes or shelter centres, while others were deliberately targeted in killings and field executions.
The organisation based in Geneva reported receiving harrowing accounts of killings and field executions involving individuals aged 60 and above. These instances involved soldiers shooting elderly individuals right after instructing them to evacuate their homes. In certain cases, executions occurred mere moments after their release from arbitrary detention lasting hours or days.
Euro-Med Monitor reports that Dr. Akram Abu Hasira and his wife, elderly individuals, were shot and left to bleed to death by Israeli forces on 21st December. This tragic incident unfolded after the couple was forcibly evacuated from their home on Yarmouk Street in Gaza City, with soldiers subsequently setting their home on fire. Dr. Mahmoud Abu Hasira, their son, revealed that following the Israeli forces’ withdrawal, the family managed to bury the couple’s bodies.
A witness informed Euro-Med Monitor that Haboub and his family sought shelter in the Holy Family School after an Israeli bombing targeted the house they were previously using for refuge. They had evacuated their own home due to intense Israeli bombardment of Gaza City. The day after their arrival at the school on December 8, Israeli forces raided the building, arresting all men and some women, subsequently stripping the men and transporting them to an unknown location. In the early hours of 10th December, the Israeli forces released a group of detainees, which included multiple elderly individuals. Shockingly, moments later, they were targeted with a tank shell and a quadcopter, resulting in the deaths of Haboub and the academic Abu Absa.
Euro-Med Monitor also recorded the execution of Nawaf Muhammad Musa Al-Zaanin, an elderly man, on 10th December during the evacuation of the Awni Al-Harthani School in the Beit Lahia project in northern Gaza. Al-Zaanin, a resident of Beit Hanoun, had experienced displacement multiple times before Israeli forces stormed the school where they were seeking refuge. He was fatally shot in the head, as reported by the human rights organization.
In addition, The human rights organisation highlighted the execution of Dr. Muhammad Eid Shabir, aged 77, the former president of the Islamic University in Gaza, and his wife, Rihab Muhammad Shabir, aged 74, on November 11. The daughter of Dr. Shabir confirmed to Euro-Med Monitor that Israeli planes targeted her aunt’s house on Abu Hasira Street in Gaza, resulting in the death of five civilians, including her parents, her sister-in-law Najat Ayoub Al-Helu, and her nephew Muhammad Malik Shabir. Fifteen people managed to survive the attack, with the majority of the victims being women and children.
She told Euro-Med Monitor, “They came out alive, fleeing into the street, where my mother sent a distress message, and I heard my father’s voice calling for one of his grandchildren,” “After more than 24 hours, the survivors were forced to leave the area by the army and walk to Al-Shifa Hospital—[a group] including some wounded and elderly people—leaving the dead bodies under the rubble”.
“On the way, those who went out saw my brother’s wife and nephew killed in the street. After the start of the truce on 25 November, my parents were found dead in the street on the opposite road to Shifa after they had been shot by an army sniper.”
Euro-Med Monitor reported that on 17th November, Israeli aircraft bombed Al-Wafa Hospital for the Elderly in Gaza City, the only facility providing housing and care for elderly individuals in the Gaza Strip. The attack resulted in the death of Dr. Medhat Muhaisen, the hospital’s director, and injuries to several other doctors.
Many elderly civilians, both men and women over the age of 70 and 80, were affected. Testimonies from released detainees confirm they were denied access to treatment and subjected to torture and abuse, irrespective of their challenging health situations and/or advanced age.
Euro-Med Monitor issued a warning that tens of thousands of elderly people face a serious risk of death, as 69% of them suffer from chronic diseases, and the majority haven’t received medical care due to most hospitals being out of service. The rights group also highlighted the unique challenges faced by elderly individuals in displacement camps, lacking suitable services or care options considering their age, health issues, vulnerability to cold weather, and frequent restroom needs. Notably, 700–1,000 people share a single bathroom in these camps.
Euro-Med Monitor emphasised the need for enhanced protection of vulnerable civilians beyond the requirements of international humanitarian law.
Yet, Israel has breached all these norms, transforming every vulnerable group in Gaza-women, children, and civilians-into legitimate targets, met with international silence and complicity. Euro-Med Monitor states that Israel is conducting a campaign of broad punishment and killing, oppressing the most vulnerable in Palestinian society in an unprecedented manner. This genocide in Gaza exposes Israel’s blatant disregard for international humanitarian law and represents a grave violation of the principles of war.
Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor reiterated its plea to the international community, particularly the signatories of the Geneva Convention, to fulfill their obligations in safeguarding civilians in the Gaza Strip. Emphasizing the urgent necessity of a lasting ceasefire, the organization urged for an immediate international investigation into Israel’s egregious crimes to halt the ongoing genocide. The rights group asserted that countries choosing silence are effectively endorsing Israeli genocide.
Euro-Med Monitor Report:
