UN Expert Condemns 'Massacre' in Gaza's Jabalia Refugee Camp

The genocidal offensive, now in its ninth day, has drawn widespread condemnation, with reports of hundreds of Palestinians killed and cut off from basic supplies.

Israeli forces are committing "another massacre" in the Jabalia refugee camp in northern Gaza, according to Francesca Albanese, the UN special rapporteur for the occupied Palestinian territories. She stated that Palestinian civilians are being killed “in groups and one by one” amid "unspeakable cruelty and sadism" by Israeli troops, whom she described as "willing executioners" of a genocidal plan.

Albanese further criticized the attacks, which are being conducted with the support of Western countries and their military supplies. "It blows my mind to think that WE KNOW what Israel is doing and altogether we cannot stop it. Looking at where we were 100 years ago, no much progress has been achieved," she said in a post on X.

The Israeli military has been conducting a large-scale incursion in northern Gaza for nine days, targeting the densely populated Jabalia camp. The region is home to approximately 400,000 Palestinians who have been trapped in the area, unable to leave despite Israeli-issued evacuation orders. The residents are without access to food, water, or other essentials, and are continuously subjected to bombardment, effectively cutting them off from the outside world.

Humanitarian groups have described the situation as a "systematic mass slaughter," with at least 200 people killed since the ground offensive began earlier this month. Civil defense workers have reported that over 70 bodies remain unrecovered on the streets of Jabalia, Beit Lahiya, and Beit Hanoon, as they are unable to retrieve them due to ongoing Israeli strikes.

"This is a continuation of genocidal acts that began a year ago," said Ambassador Majed Bamya, the deputy permanent observer of Palestine to the UN. He condemned Israel's siege of northern Gaza, which has now entered its ninth day. "What is happening in northern Gaza now is a genocide within the genocide," Bamya stated in a post on X.

Osama Hamdan, a Hamas representative in Lebanon, told Al Jazeera that Israel has blocked food supplies from entering northern Gaza for the past ten days. He described the Israeli military’s recent actions in Jabalia as "a crime against humanity."

Military analyst Elijah Magnier echoed the gravity of the situation, explaining that Israel’s siege and repeated attempts to seize control of the Jabalia camp have resulted in heavy casualties. "The Israeli army pushed their tanks to surround the Jabalia camp. This is the third time they are trying to break into the camp after failing the first and second time," Magnier told Al Jazeera. "They bombarded and destroyed large parts of it in the previous attempts, causing large numbers of casualties," he added. "Their operation now aims at controlling the Jabalia camp, if they can this time. They have not managed that so far."

The Israeli military onslaught in Gaza and Lebanon continue to face widespread condemnation as the humanitarian situation worsens in northern Gaza, with no sign of a resolution.