On March 12, the United Nations released a new report formally accusing Israel of systematically employing sexual and gender-based violence as a method of warfare, as well as committing “genocidal acts” through targeted attacks on maternal and reproductive healthcare facilities in Gaza.

“The evidence collected by the Commission reveals a deplorable increase in sexual and gender-based violence,” Navi Pillay, Chair of the Commission stated in the report.

“There is no escape from the conclusion that Israel has employed sexual and gender-based violence against Palestinians to terrorise them and perpetuate a system of oppression that undermines their right to self-determination.”

The report details acts including rape and genital violence, stating they were carried out either under direct orders or with implicit approval from Israel’s top civilian and military leadership. 

These incidents are distinct from other documented forms of sexual violence cited as part of the Israeli military’s “standard operating procedures” including forced public stripping, threats of rape, and sexual assault.

The Commission's findings are based on testimonies from victims, witnesses, medical personnel, civil society representatives, academics, lawyers, and medical experts, gathered during public hearings in Geneva on March 11-12.

Beyond individual acts of violence, the report accuses Israel of a systematic targeting of sexual and reproductive healthcare facilities across Gaza. Notably, in December 2023, Israeli forces struck the Al Basma Centre, Gaza’s largest fertility clinic, destroying over 4,000 embryos and 1,000 additional specimens of sperm and unfertilised eggs.

According to the Commission, this attack constitutes two genocidal crimes under the Rome Statute and the Genocide Convention: “deliberately inflicting conditions of life calculated to bring about the physical destruction of Palestinians and imposing measures intended to prevent births.”

Why is it significant?

On November 21, 2024, the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant. 

Although these warrants accuse the Israeli leaders of war crimes—including starvation as a method of warfare—and crimes against humanity including murder and persecution, they do not explicitly mention sexual violence.

Legal experts suggest that the UN report could potentially prompt the ICC to expand its charges against the Israeli leaders.

“While much of the evidence in the Commission’s report was documented by Palestinians in real time and is not new, the momentum generated by its publication could lead to expanded charges for Israeli leaders before the ICC,” Lara Elborno, a Palestinian-American international lawyer and activist based in Paris, tells TRT World.

Despite extensive documentation of sexual violence by international organisations, including the UN Human Rights Office, Amnesty International, and B’Tselem, the ICC has yet to explicitly address these crimes.

“International institutions like the ICC have a long way to go to align their work with the factual reality on the ground,” Elborno says.

“Civil society groups should rely on its findings to put pressure on States and corporations to confront and end their complicity with Israel's crimes against the Palestinian people and urge the ICC to bring further charges against Israeli leaders.”

Under the Genocide Convention, sexual violence, including rape, forced sterilisation, and reproductive restrictions, can be classified as acts of genocide.

Therefore, experts argue that the new report could significantly bolster South Africa’s ongoing genocide case against Israel at the International Court of Justice (ICJ).

Andrea Maria Pelliconi, an assistant professor of Human Rights Law at the University of Southampton, describes the report as a “very useful resource,” that could aid in investigative efforts and the gathering of additional evidence for potential criminal proceedings.

“The Independent Commission's report could at least be a very helpful resource for the proceeding before the ICJ,” she tells TRT World.