UN human rights chief ‘shocked’ by reports of mass graves in Gaza hospitals

The UN human rights chief said he was “appalled” by the destruction of Gaza’s Nasser and al-Shifa hospitals and reports of “mass graves” found in those areas after Israeli raids.

Volker Türk called for independent investigations into the deaths.

Palestinian officials said they had exhumed the bodies of nearly 300 people in Nasser. It is not clear how they died or when they were buried.

Israel’s military said claims it buried bodies there “are baseless”.

But he said that during a two-week operation at the hospital in the city of Khan Younis in February, troops “found that there were” bodies buried by Palestinians “in places where intelligence indicated the possible presence of hostages.”

Ten hostages who have now been released said they were held at Nasser Hospital for long periods of time during their captivity.

Before the Israeli operation in Nasser, hospital staff had said they were forced to bury bodies in the hospital yard because nearby fighting blocked access to cemeteries. There were similar reports from al-Shifa before the first Israeli raid on the hospital in November.

The Israeli military has said it raided several hospitals in Gaza during the war because Hamas fighters were operating inside them – a claim Hamas and medical officials have denied.

The war began when Hamas gunmen carried out an unprecedented cross-border attack in southern Israel on October 7, killing around 1,200 people – mostly civilians – and taking another 253 hostage in Gaza.

More than 34,180 people – most of them children and women – have been killed in Gaza since then, the Hamas-run territory’s health ministry says.

A spokesman for the UN Human Rights Office said it is currently working to confirm reports by Palestinian officials that 283 bodies were found on the Nasser Hospital grounds, of which 42 have been identified.

“The victims were reportedly buried deep in the ground and covered with garbage,” Ravina Shamdasani told reporters in Geneva.

“Among the dead were reportedly elderly, women and injured, while others…were found with their hands tied and naked.”

Mr Türk called for independent, substantive and transparent investigations into the deaths, adding: “Given the prevailing climate of lawlessness, this investigation should include international inspectors.”

With data from the BBC