‘Israel committing a war crime’ in Gaza, Palestinian leader says
- Over a million Gazans have been told to evacuate to the south
- Palestinian leader Mustafa Barghouti called Israel's actions a war crime
- Barghouti says the U.S. shares blame for not engaging in peace progress
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(NewsNation) — Israel has told more than one million people in northern Gaza to evacuate as the military prepares an attack. International aid groups have called the situation a humanitarian crisis as Gaza continues to be under siege.
Palestinian National Initiative leader Mustafa Barghouti joined NewsNation to discuss the situation facing Palestinians in Gaza, who have been under heavy bombardment since Saturday.
“Israel is committing really a horrible war crime there by forcing people out of their homes,” he said. “And not only forcing the people out of their homes but also demolishing these homes, one after the other.”
Barghouti pointed to an air strike on a convoy of people leaving the area as another example of the struggle civilians in Gaza face.
The Israeli Defense Force has defended the actions, saying it is adhering to the rules of armed conflict by strongly suggesting people evacuate.
“There are 2.3 million people living only in 140 square miles,” Barghouti responded. “These 1.1 million people are supposed to go down, so there will be 2.3 million people in a very small area. And then the Israeli bombardment will continue, and the demolishing of houses and structures will continue in the south.”
Barghouti condemned violence against civilians on both sides of the conflict while also blaming the Israeli government’s previous policies toward Israel, which have kept Gaza under a blockade for 16 years.
“The root problem of everything we are facing today is the continuation of Israeli illegal occupation of Palestinian land, an occupation that has transformed into a system of apartheid,” he said.
Barghouti also held President Joe Biden and Secretary of State Antony Blinken responsible for their roles in the ongoing conflict between Israel and Palestine.
“I think that the two persons that are largely responsible, and I’m glad that I’m speaking to an American outlet, are Mr. Biden and Mr. Blinken, who insisted all the last three years that they will not engage in any kind of peace process to resolve this conflict before it exploded as we see it today,” he said.
