UN condemns intensifying Israeli attacks in Gaza

GENEVA, July 21: The United Nations has condemned what it describes as an intensification of Israeli military operations in the Gaza Strip, warning that civilians continue to face grave danger despite a ceasefire that has officially remained in effect since October. At the same time, satellite imagery reveals that Israel is rapidly constructing a massive earthen barrier across much of Gaza, raising concerns that what was intended as a temporary military boundary could become a more permanent division of the territory.
Speaking in Geneva on Tuesday, UN Human Rights Office spokesperson Thameen Al-Kheetan said Israeli attacks had killed at least 57 Palestinians, including six children and eight women, between July 13 and July 20. According to the UN, many of the strikes hit residential buildings, crowded areas, and at least one tent shelter for internally displaced people.
Al-Kheetan said that 34 of those killed died well away from the Israeli-imposed "yellow line"�"the boundary marking the area under Israeli military control following the October ceasefire agreement with Hamas. In attacks on July 17 and 18 alone, the UN verified that 10 Israeli strikes across Gaza City, central Gaza, northern Gaza, and Khan Younis killed at least 21 Palestinians.
One strike on an apartment in Gaza City reportedly killed an entire family: two parents and their three children, aged eight, 15, and 17.
"The killing of civilians in these attacks raises concerns of continuing violations of international humanitarian law, war crimes and other possible atrocity crimes in Gaza," Al-Kheetan said, stressing that deliberately targeting civilians constitutes a war crime under international law.
The Israeli military has defended its operations, saying it has targeted Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad members allegedly involved in the October 7, 2023 attack on Israel or in holding Israeli hostages. It also reported striking weapons depots, arms manufacturing sites, and rocket-launching positions, arguing that the infrastructure posed a threat to Israeli troops.
Alongside the renewed military operations, Israel is quietly constructing a vast network of earthen berms along the yellow line, according to satellite imagery analyzed by The Associated Press. More than 23 kilometers (14 miles) of barriers have already been built�"covering over half the length of the Gaza Strip, which stretches approximately 40 kilometers from north to south.
When presented with the imagery, the Israeli military confirmed it had constructed a physical barrier and developed a fortified security zone equipped with intelligence and technological systems. It said the barrier is intended to prevent infiltration and protect Israeli forces as well as nearby Israeli communities but declined to specify how far construction would ultimately extend.
The yellow line was established under the October ceasefire agreement as a temporary boundary pending a broader Israeli withdrawal and the eventual deployment of an international security force. However, with implementation of the ceasefire stalled, Palestinians increasingly fear that the military-controlled area is becoming a permanent border.
Satellite images show rapid expansion of the barrier in recent weeks. In southern Gaza, a section separating the destroyed city of Rafah from the Muwasi displacement camps grew from roughly 500 meters on July 1 to about 2.4 kilometers by July 15. If construction continues, it is expected to connect with a nearly uninterrupted 17-kilometer stretch already extending from near Khan Younis toward Gaza City.
Construction on that central section began in February and has continued steadily, with more than one kilometer added between late June and early July near an Israeli military base established on the ruins of BaniSuheila. Additional disconnected stretches have also appeared near the devastated northern town of Beit Lahia.
The military also told AP that it is working to more clearly mark the route of the yellow line in an effort to reduce friction and prevent harm to civilians. However, the exact route has never been formally defined in either the ceasefire agreement or public statements by Israeli or US officials.�" AGENCIES