The Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies (CIHRS) welcomes the announcement of the long-overdue ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas. There must be no further delays to the implementation of the ceasefire. CIHRS notes with concern that Israel continues to bombard the Gaza Strip and kill scores of Palestinian civilians. Among the latest casualties is Ihab Fisal, a staff member of the Palestinian Center for Human Rights, who was killed this morning together with his wife and two children by an Israeli airstrike on their home in Gaza.
After 15 months of unimaginable horrors and a genocidal campaign against the Palestinian people, both parties must fully adhere to this ceasefire agreement and its conditions, including the release of all hostages and Palestinian prisoners, the facilitation of humanitarian aid and lifting the blockade on Gaza. Israel’s commitment to allow the internally displaced people of Gaza to return to their homes must be fully implemented and a full reconstruction process must be facilitated, in conjunction with aid delivery and access to basic services, to allow for a safe and dignified return. The international community, which has repeatedly allowed Israel’s actions in Gaza to go unchecked, must now hold Israel accountable, and end the impunity that has perpetuated the violence.
“The cessation of hostilities is a vital and hopeful step, but it is only the beginning of ensuring protection for the lives of Palestinians in Gaza,” said Amna Guellali, Research Director at the Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies (CIHRS). “The humanitarian crisis in Gaza remains one of the worst in recent history, and the dire conditions and urgent needs of the Palestinian people must be prioritized to save them from further loss of life.”
Since the onset of the conflict on 7 October 2023, Israel has killed at least 46,645 Palestinians, including 13,319 children, and injured over 110,000 people, according to the Ministry of Health in Gaza. In Israel, approximately 1,200 people were killed during the Hamas-led attacks on 7 October and more than 200 were taken captive. Since then, Israel has committed heinous war crimes in Gaza, including the systematic targeting of civilians, the use of starvation as a weapon of war, and the forced displacement of over 90 percent of the population.
Israel must ensure that aid is delivered promptly and unhindered, and states and key humanitarian providers must scale-up their response to meet the life-threatening needs of the population. While the ceasefire agreement includes provisions to increase humanitarian aid, the required 600 truckloads of humanitarian aid delivery per day is insufficient given the massive needs of the population, when truckloads averaged at 500 per day pre-conflict.
Approximately 876,000 people in Gaza are facing emergency levels of food insecurity – in an estimated population of 2 million. Access to healthcare remains severely restricted, with only 17 hospitals still functioning, albeit only partially and facing dire shortages of water, fuel, medical supplies and staff – as over 1,000 health workers have been killed. Israel has repeatedly raided hospitals and detained staff, further impeding access to healthcare. Recently, on 27 December 2024, Israeli military raided and put out of service the last functioning major medical facility in North Gaza. The military arbitrarily detained its director, Dr Hussam Abu Safiya, along with other medical staff and patients.
In January 2024, The International Court of Justice (ICJ) ordered Israel to refrain from acts prohibited by the Genocide Convention, after finding a plausible case of genocide. However, in May 2024, the ICJ observed further deterioration of ‘catastrophic living conditions’ and found that the situation ‘could not be more urgent’, notably in the view of ‘prolonged and widespread deprivation of food and other basic necessities to which the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip had been subjected’.
All parties to the conflict must fully abide by this ceasefire and work for a long-term solution. There cannot be sustainable peace in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT) as long as the root causes of this conflict are not addressed. The conflict in Gaza today did not start on 7 October last year, it dates back to over 76 years of displacement and dispossession and over 57 years of a relentless occupation.
Israel’s apartheid system and the occupation of the OPT must end, in accordance with the decisions of the ICJ. The right to self-determination of the Palestinian people must be respected in accordance with international law and numerous UN Security Council resolutions. Free and fair Palestinian elections must be held in the OPT, with the participation of all Palestinians, without discrimination. The last elections for the Palestinian Legislative Council were held in 2006, and the last presidential elections in 2005. These elections are the key step towards ensuring stability and sustainability of any future peace talks.
In July 2024, the ICJ found that Israel’s continued presence in the OPT, its settlements and exploitation of Palestinian resources are unlawful and must end as ‘rapidly as possible’. It also found that Israel is in breach of Article 3 of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (CERD), which prohibits racial segregation and apartheid.
Despite the illegality of its occupation, Israel has intensified violence in the West Bank, through unnecessary and disproportionate force and repeated incursions. Between 7 October 2023 and 8 January 2024, 813 Palestinians were killed in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, marking it the deadliest period since 2005. Israel continues to expand its illegal settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, with over 30,000 housing units expanded in 2023 – a 180 percent increase over a five-year period. By September 2023, approximately 700,000 settlers illegally resided in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem.
Justice and accountability are vital for a sustainable solution; all those who have committed atrocities during the conflict must be held accountable. To this end, full access to the Gaza Strip and other affected areas must be provided to independent international investigatory mechanisms. The International Criminal Court’s arrest warrants must be upheld against the Prime Minister of Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu, and the former Minister of Defense of Israel, Yoav Gallant, as well as the head of Hamas’ military wing, Mohammad Diab Ibrahim Al-Masri (‘Deif’), in the context of war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in Israel and Palestine from at least 7 October 2023.
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