‘The Government must now stop indulging in genocide denial’ - Kristyan Benedict

In response to the UN commission of Inquiry declaring Israel has committed, and continues to commit, genocide in Gaza, Kristyan Benedict, Amnesty International UK’s Crisis Response Manager, said:

“We welcome the UN commission’s findings that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza – a significant and necessary moment. Now the UK government must change its position and take action without delay.

“Its continued reluctance to officially acknowledge even the risk of the ongoing genocide in Gaza is increasingly untenable and stands in stark contrast to overwhelming legal evidence and the mounting consensus among international genocide scholars and human rights organisations.

“Under the Genocide Convention, all states – including the UK – bear a clear and binding legal obligation to act. This solemn duty, enshrined in international law, cannot be dismissed or delayed due to political convenience.

“The Government must now stop indulging in genocide denial. It must urgently fulfil its legal and moral responsibility by taking immediate, decisive steps to prevent and punish genocide.”

To help stop the genocide in Gaza, Amnesty International UK continues to urge the UK government to take immediate and concrete action:

• End all UK arms exports to Israel 
• Support the ICC and enforce its arrest warrants 
• Implement ICJ rulings in full 
• Ban all trade with Israeli settlements 
• Adopt targeted sanctions against those Israeli officials most implicated in international crimes 
• Demand dismantling of apartheid and an end to Israel’s occupation