The UN human rights chief, Volker Türk, expressed fresh concerns about potential war crimes following the retrieval of numerous bodies from the wreckage of buildings in Gaza destroyed by Israeli airstrikes in the conflict that started almost three years ago. Türk highlighted that the remains of entire families, predominantly women and children, were being uncovered from the sites devastated by Israeli attacks. He emphasized the emotional toll on families whose worst fears were now being confirmed after the long wait for closure.
Türk referenced a 2024 UN report that raised doubts about the compliance of Israeli strikes on residential and civilian structures during the initial phase of the conflict with international humanitarian law. In response, the Israeli government, including the Prime Minister’s Office and Foreign Ministry, did not immediately provide comments, reiterating its stance of denying intentional targeting of civilians and asserting adherence to international law while combating Hamas militants in Gaza.
The conflict, triggered by Hamas’s incursion into Israel in October 2023, resulted in approximately 61 million tons of debris in Gaza, necessitating a projected seven-year cleanup effort according to the United Nations. Despite a ceasefire brokered by the United States ending large-scale hostilities in October 2025, sporadic Israeli strikes persist, with accusations from both sides of violating the truce.
Since November 2025, the Palestinian Civil Defence has recovered over 630 bodies and human remains from beneath demolished structures across Gaza, with authorities estimating over 8,000 individuals still buried in the wreckage. Türk expressed concern that the recovered remains might only represent a fraction of the casualties, given the extensive destruction in Gaza caused by Israeli bombings and subsequent clearance operations.
Furthermore, Türk criticized Israel for continuing to flatten areas of Gaza where its forces are present, alleging a lack of respect for the deceased trapped under the rubble. The conflict in 2023 led to the deaths of 1,200 individuals in Israel and the abduction of 251 more, while over 73,000 Palestinians lost their lives, as reported by Gaza health authorities.
Israel maintains that it has made significant efforts to minimize civilian casualties, alleging Hamas’s exploitation of Gaza residents as human shields in densely populated regions, a claim denied by Hamas. Türk called for international investigators to access all parts of Gaza to assist in preserving evidence for ongoing legal proceedings examining conduct during the conflict. However, Israel’s refusal to allow the entry of necessary heavy machinery for rubble removal, as indicated by Türk, poses challenges to the preservation and identification of human remains before full clearance operations begin.
Recent reports from the Palestinian Civil Defence highlighted the recovery of 96 bodies and human remains, including a significant number of children and women, from a single site in the Zeitoun area of Gaza City, underscoring the ongoing humanitarian crisis in the region.
