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 The United Nations Human Rights Council's Special
Rapporteur on the right to the highest attainable standard of health
issued the following statement today:
As the world's attention is drawn to the widening conflict in
Lebanon, it
is extremely important that the deepening humanitarian crisis in the
Gaza Strip is closely monitored and urgently addressed.
The depth of this crisis cannot be understood without
grasping the acute dependency and vulnerability of the population of
Gaza.
Amongst the most densely populated place in the world,
Gaza has been occupied by
Israel for almost
40 years. Its population of 1.4 million, most of whom are refugees,
remains very heavily dependent on Israel, as well as the donor
community.
For a variety of reasons, the humanitarian situation in
Gaza
deteriorated significantly between March and June 2006. In mid-June,
WHO called the health situation in Gaza "very dangerous".
Following the events of 25 June, including the capture of Corporal
Gilad Shalit,
Israel
has carried out numerous military interventions in the Gaza Strip.
According to UN sources, more than 100 Palestinians have been
killed, including 18 children. Almost 400 Palestinians have been
injured, including 108 children. With limited exceptions, Israel has
sealed Gaza's borders. Some patients returning home to
Gaza after medical treatment abroad, and some patients seeking
treatment abroad, have been unable to pass through the Rafah
crossing: while waiting, nine Palestinians have died. On the night
of 27-28 June,
Gaza's only
electricity power station was attacked and incapacitated.
In short, since WHO's assessment in mid-June, the precarious
humanitarian situation in
Gaza has dramatically worsened. Poverty rates, for
example, have now risen to 75%.
Here, I confine myself to some brief, preliminary remarks
about the impact of the destruction of
Gaza's electricity power station, as well as the relevant
international law.
Following the attack, the lack of power for pumps is causing
a serious water shortage, and affecting sewage disposal, for tens of
thousands of households throughout the Gaza Strip. There are reports
of sewage leakage, as well as a reduction in municipal waste
collection and disposal. Reported cases of diarrhoea have increased
by 163% compared to the same period last year. It is possible that
communicable diseases, like cholera and poliomyelitis, will
re-emerge. Reduced hospital services are dependent upon generators
that are unsuitable for constant, long-term use.
The right to the highest attainable standard of health
includes access to medical services and also access to adequate
sanitation and safe drinking water. The destruction of
Gaza's
electricity power station is profoundly inconsistent with the health
and safety of all civilians living in Gaza, especially the young,
sick, infirm and elderly, as well as their right to the highest
attainable standard of health, enshrined in the International Bill
of Rights and other international human rights instruments.Moreover, the destruction of
Gaza's electricity
power station may be a violation of international humanitarian law
(sometimes known as the 'laws of war').
The basic rule of international humanitarian law is that
parties to a conflict must always distinguish between combatants and
civilians. Attacks can only be directed against combatants and
military objectives.
Under international humanitarian law, a target may be
attacked if it is both making an effective contribution to the
enemy's military action and its destruction provides a definite
military advantage to the attacker. Whether or not both conditions
applied in the case of
Gaza's electricity
power station is an issue that demands careful, independent
investigation.
In addition, an attack must be proportionate. A target may not be
attacked if the attack is likely to cause a disproportionate amount
of collateral civilian damage. Whether or not the Israeli attack on
Gaza's electricity power station was proportionate is another issue
that demands careful, independent investigation.
When undertaking this enquiry, it is imperative that, in
addition to military matters, other relevant issues are also taken
into account, including the acute dependency and vulnerability of
the people of
Gaza. When the
power station was attacked, what was the foreseeable incidental
impact on the civilian population of Gaza?
If the attack on the electricity power station was not in
conformity with international humanitarian law it amounts to a war
crime. For example, if the attack were disproportionate, it was a
war crime.
In these circumstances, I strongly recommend that, as a
matter of urgency, an independent enquiry be made to determine
whether or not the recent attack on
Gaza's electricity
power station was a war crime.
Under the mandate given to me by the Human Rights Council, I
am required to report "on the status, throughout the world, of the
realization of the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest
attainable standard of physical and mental health". I am also
required to report on the domestic and international "obstacles"
impeding the implementation of this human right. If a war crime
bearing upon the health of the population of
Gaza has been
committed, it constitutes a very significant "obstacle" to the
implementation of the right to the highest attainable standard of
health. It is for this reason that I urge the swift establishment of
a careful, independent enquiry into the attack on Gaza's electricity
power station, in the light of international humanitarian law. The
assessment should also take account of all relevant international
human rights law.
Finally, I urge the captors of Corporal Gilad Shalit to
release him unharmed immediately. Pending his release, he must
receive appropriate medical assistance and care, and he must be
treated humanely. Also, I remind all parties that the prohibition
against targeting a civilian population applies to civilians within
both Israel
and the Gaza Strip. All such targeting should cease immediately.
In May, I wrote to the Government of Israel seeking an
invitation to visit the OPT. I look forward to receiving a positive
reply as a matter of urgency, enabling me to assess the health
situation, through the lens of the right to the highest attainable
standard of health, at first hand.
The Special Rapporteur is an independent expert appointed
by the United Nations Human Rights Council to help States and others
promote and protect the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the
highest attainable standard of physical and mental health.
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