A Geneva-based rights group says the Israeli military has “executed” dozens of elderly Palestinians in the Gaza Strip in “direct shooting operations” since the start of the regime’s brutal onslaught against the besieged territory in early October.
The Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor made the remarks in a statement on Sunday, saying 1,049 elderly men and women have been killed so far by Israeli troops during the regime’s ongoing genocidal war– about 1% of the estimated 107,000 elderly people who live in the Gaza Strip, and 3.9% of all Palestinian deaths.
The rights group went on to say that the majority of the victims “were crushed to death under the debris of their homes or the shelter centers where they sought safety after Israeli aircrafts bombed their homes, or while being forced to seek necessities in the streets and marketplaces.”
“Alarmingly, however, dozens were targeted in killings and field executions,” it added.
Euro-Med further noted that “The elderly are paying a high price for the disproportionate attacks carried out by Israeli forces, as hundreds of them have been killed in Israel’s genocide, and thousands more injured.”
It also stated that numerous elderly civilians, including both men and women over the age of 70 and even 80 have experienced detention.
“Testimonies from released detainees affirm that they were denied access to treatment and subjected to torture and abuse, regardless of their difficult health situation and/or advanced age,” the rights group said.
The latest development came a day after the Palestinian resistance movement Hamas said Israeli forces have “summarily executed” at least 137 Palestinians in Gaza since the regime began its brutal attacks on the territory, calling for an international probe into the war crime.
In a statement on Saturday, Hamas said it has gathered testimonies showing “the Israeli military carried out the summary execution of 137 Palestinian civilians” in the northern Gaza Strip, including Gaza City.
The resistance group went on to say that the Israeli military dug a large pit east of Gaza City and placed dozens of detained citizens in it before executing them and filling up the pit.
Earlier in the day, the Hamas health ministry also said dozens of Palestinians were killed this week and publicly “executed” during an Israeli military operation in Jabalia north of the Gaza Strip.
Israel waged the brutal war on Gaza on October 7 after Hamas carried out a historic operation against the occupying entity in response to the Israeli regime’s decades-long violence against Palestinians.
Since the start of the offensive, the regime has killed at least 20,258 Palestinians, mostly women and children, and injured 53,688 others.
The Tel Aviv regime has imposed a “complete siege” on the territory, cutting off fuel, electricity, food, and water to the more than two million Palestinians living there.
