From the Liveblog of
Thursday, November 14, 2024
US State Department rejects UN report accusing Israel of genocide in Gaza
Jacob Magid is The Times of Israel's US bureau chief
US State Department spokesperson Vedant Patel rejects the conclusion of a report submitted by a UN special committee that Israel is carrying out a genocide against Palestinians in Gaza.
“That is something we would unequivocally disagree with. We think that kind of phrasing and those kinds of accusations are certainly unfounded, as it relates to the humanitarian situation,” Patel says during a press briefing.
He also calls out aid organizations for some of their reporting regarding the humanitarian situation in Gaza, which Patel claims is not grounded in facts.
He points to a “scorecard” published by eight rights organizations stating that Israel has not allowed any aid to reach northern Gaza, which he says is inaccurate. Israel has in fact allowed several aid convoys to reach northern Gaza in recent days but did for nearly a month seal off several major towns in north Gaza to such convoys until mid-October.
Patel says the scorecard also claims that Israel has not expanded the Muwasi humanitarian zone when it has. However, the scorecard doesn’t actually claim that Israel hasn’t expanded the zone, but rather states that only a limited number of people have been allowed to move outside of it.
The State Department spokesperson notes that in the coming days, the IDF and COGAT will shrink the list of “dual-use items” that are banned from entering Gaza, as requested by the US in its letter to Israel last month giving it 30 days to address the humanitarian crisis in Gaza or risk being deemed in violation with US law.
The Biden administration announced on Tuesday that Israel had taken enough steps to remain in compliance with US law but insisted that it would continue to monitor the situation to ensure that measures to boost the humanitarian crisis are sustained.
