Former Israeli attorney general says Israel committing genocide in Gaza

Former Israeli attorney general Michael Ben-Yair said that Israel is committing genocide against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.

"Jews, who went through a genocide 80 years ago, are committing genocide in Gaza," Ben-Yair, writing on X on Tuesday, said.

"Shame, rage and sorrow," he added.

His comment was a caption to a news report by Haaretz on two leading Israeli human rights organisations, B'Tselem and Physicians for Human Rights-Israel (PHRI), calling Israel's actions in Gaza a genocide on Monday.

While global human rights bodies like Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International have been using genocide to describe Israel's actions in Gaza for several months now, the report marks the first time an Israeli organisation has formally used the word.

In its report, B’Tselem examined Israel’s policies in Gaza and statements made by senior Israeli politicians and military commanders on its goals in the enclave.

"Explicit attempt to destroy the population of Gaza and impose living conditions so catastrophic that Palestinian society cannot continue to exist there. That is the exact definition of genocide," B'tselem said.

Meanwhile, PHRI’s report presented a detailed legal analysis of Israel’s war on Gaza, focusing on the dismantling of Gaza’s healthcare system.

Israel has killed more than 60,000 Palestinians and wounded over 145,000 others since 7 October 2025, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry. 

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