GENEVA: The use of the US and Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation to distribute food in the Palestinian territory is 鈥渙utrageous,鈥� the head of a UN inquiry said Wednesday.
Navi Pillay, who chairs the UN鈥檚 Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Israel and the Palestinian territories, joined a growing chorus of criticism of the GHF鈥檚 operations, and cited its US links.
鈥淚n every war, the siege and starvation surely leads to death,鈥� the former UN rights chief told journalists.
鈥淏ut this initiative of what鈥檚 called a foundation, a private foundation, to supply food, is what I see as outrageous, because it involves the United States itself, the government, and it turns out, as we watch daily, that people who go to those centers are being killed as they seek food.鈥�
An officially private effort with opaque funding, GHF began operations on May 26 after Israel completely cut off supplies into Gaza for more than two months, sparking warnings of mass famine.
The United Nations and major aid groups have refused to cooperate with the foundation over concerns it was designed to cater to Israeli military objectives.
Dozens of Palestinians have been killed while trying to reach GHF distribution points.
Pillay said the commission would 鈥渉ave to look into... the policy purpose and how it鈥檚 being effected.
鈥淲e have to spell out what is the motive of, right now, the killing of people who are coming for humanitarian aid from this so-called foundation 鈥� and that lives are being lost just in trying to secure food for their children.鈥�
Unprecedented in its open-ended scope, the three-person Commission of Inquiry was established by the UN Human Rights Council in May 2021 to investigate alleged violations of international humanitarian and human rights law in Israel and the Palestinian territories.
South African former High Court judge Pillay, 83, served as a judge on the International Criminal Court and presided over the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda.
On Tuesday she presented the commission鈥檚 latest report to the Human Rights Council.
It said Israel had attacked Gaza鈥檚 schools, religious and cultural sites as part of a 鈥渨idespread and systematic鈥� assault on the civilian population, in which Israeli forces have committed 鈥渨ar crimes鈥� and 鈥渢he crime against humanity of extermination.鈥�
Israel does not cooperate with the investigation and has long accused it of 鈥渟ystematic anti-Israel discrimination.鈥�