Palestinian Death Toll Reaches 7,000, Foreign Minister Al-Maliki: Israel Is Carrying Out A Revenge War In Gaza

The impact of Israel's attack on Gaza October 2023. (Wikimedia Commons/Al Araby)

JAKARTA - Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki said on Thursday that Israel was waging a war of revenge in Gaza, when the number of Palestinians killed reached 7,000, as bombardment continued in response to Hamas attacks earlier this month.

"So many wars have taken place (in Gaza), this is different. This time it is a war of revenge," al-Maliki told journalists in The Hague, Netherlands, as reported by Reuters, October 26.

"This war has no real goal, but rather the total destruction of every habitable place in Gaza. This war was not directed by a military plan, no norms were respected. All international rules of war have been violated," he explained.

Israel bombarded Gaza for almost three weeks, after the southern region was attacked by Hamas on October 7, leaving around 1,400 of its citizens dead, leading Israel to say it had the right to defend itself.

Al-Maliki urged international leaders to pressure Israel for a full ceasefire, to ensure much-needed humanitarian aid can be delivered to Gaza.

During his visit to The Hague, al-Maliki visited the International Criminal Court (ICC), which is investigating alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity in the Palestinian territories from 2014 onwards.

Two weeks ago, prosecutor Khan told Reuters the court had jurisdiction over potential war crimes committed by Hamas militants in Israel and Israeli citizens in the Gaza Strip, even though Israel is not a member state.

"Israel, by cutting off electricity, water and fuel, by forcing people to starve, by forcibly displacing people, has committed war crimes," explained al-Maliki.

As of Thursday, the Palestinian Ministry of Health confirmed that the number of Palestinian deaths due to Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip reached 7,028, citing Daily Sabah.

Ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Qedra outlined the death toll, including around 2,913 children, 1,709 women and 397 elderly people. Meanwhile, the number of injured victims reached 18,484 people.

It is known that the death toll this time was recorded as the highest in Gaza, since Israel withdrew from the area in 2005.

"The Israeli occupation deliberately carried out 731 massacres of families. We received 1,650 reports of missing people, including 940 children who were still buried in the rubble," said al-Qedra.

He added that Israeli forces deliberately targeted 57 health care facilities, causing 12 hospitals and 32 primary care centers to malfunction, and 101 medical workers were killed in the attacks.