- ’As long as impunity continues, we will see violations,’ says UN official Ajith Sunghay
ISTANBUL
In Gaza, providing aid means risking one’s life. Ambulances have been struck while responding to calls. Aid convoys have come under fire. Workers are killed both on the job and on their way home after long, exhausting shifts.
As Israel's genocidal war enters its third year, the toll on humanitarian personnel has become devastating. According to UN data from mid-September, at least 540 aid workers and 1,722 health care workers have lost their lives.
International officials say these killings violate international law and may amount to war crimes.
Speaking to Anadolu, Ajith Sunghay, head of the UN human rights office in the occupied Palestinian territory, said that aid workers must be guaranteed safety under humanitarian and human rights law.
However, he said, Gaza has seen massive casualties among humanitarian staff despite clear protections under the Geneva Conventions.
Israel, Sunghay noted, is legally obliged to ensure food and medical supplies reach the population under its control – yet aid convoys are still blocked and hospitals stand in ruins.
In August, UN experts accused Israel of committing what they called “medicide,” the systematic destruction of Gaza’s health system.
“In addition to bearing witness to an ongoing genocide, we are also bearing witness to a ‘medicide,’ a sinister component of the intentional creation of conditions calculated to destroy Palestinians in Gaza, which constitutes an act of genocide,” said UN special rapporteurs Tlaleng Mofokeng and Francesca Albanese in a statement.
They accused Israel of “deliberately attacking and starving health care workers, paramedics and hospitals to wipe out medical care in the besieged enclave.”
The need to end impunity
Sunghay said the attacks on aid workers demand a full and impartial investigation.
“Unfortunately, accountability has not been on top of the agenda for the international community,” he said.
He explained that such attacks constitute grave breaches of the Geneva Conventions, which oblige Israel to investigate and prosecute perpetrators.
Given Israel’s long record of impunity, Sunghay urged other nations to pursue different paths to justice.
“It is vital that member states support efforts at the international level, including through the International Criminal Court (ICC) and prosecutions at the national level,” he added.
He also noted that such killings may amount to arbitrary deprivation of life under human rights law, requiring “prompt, true and effective investigation by independent and impartial bodies, leading to the identification and prosecution of those responsible.”
“As long as impunity continues, we will see violations and that needs to be ended,” he said.
Part of broader pattern
Tommaso Della Longa, spokesperson for the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), said the killings in Gaza reflect a wider pattern.
“The rules are crystal clear – humanitarian workers must be protected in every situation. Our emblem said that the Red Cross and Red Crescent are protected internationally … So our women and men should be spared that by any violence,” he told Anadolu.
Yet, he said, aid workers in Gaza, Sudan and Ethiopia have all faced deadly attacks, describing it as part of a deeply concerning global trend.
Della Longa noted that 2024 was the “deadliest year” on record for humanitarians and warned that 2025 is on track to be even worse.
International response
Della Longa pointed to a declaration signed by more than 100 governments at the UN General Assembly reaffirming the protection of humanitarian personnel.
“In this declaration, we're talking about protection. We're talking about the international humanitarian law," he said, adding that the real test will be whether governments turn words into action.
Only political will, he stressed, can ensure perpetrators are brought to justice.
Asked whether institutions such as the ICC can deliver justice, Della Longa said humanitarian organizations focus on saving lives rather than judging legal bodies.
But, he said, those institutions “were born there for a reason,” adding that he believes in multilateralism and in the international community’s ability to deliver on its own mandates.
Sunghay echoed the point, urging governments to allow the ICC to carry out its mandate without political pressure or threats.
“Attacks on humanitarian world war crimes constitute real breaches of the Geneva Convention requiring Israel to investigate and prosecute the perpetrators,” he said.
Della Longa warned that without protection for those who deliver aid, humanitarian assistance itself will never reach those in need. Accountability, he said, also lies with donors and partners, who must ensure adequate support and safety for those on the ground.
Catastrophic conditions on the ground
The IFRC spokesperson also described the situation faced by his Palestine Red Crescent colleagues in Gaza as “out of control.”
“The capacity of Palestine Red Crescent is absolutely limited because they don't have any more medicine, they don't have any more fuel for electricity,” he said, explaining how the health care system has collapsed, water and food are scarce and more than half of the ambulances are out of service.
Doctors and paramedics themselves, he added, are going hungry. One medic told him that hunger means “dreaming about food every day, saving bread for children, and lying to them about eating.”
“As a father myself … it’s really shocking because I cannot even imagine what it means not being able to protect or feed your child in a conflict. Of course, this is absolutely unacceptable,” he said.
Over the past two years, Israel has killed around 67,200 Palestinians in Gaza – most of them women and children – and wounded nearly 170,000, according to figures from Palestinian authorities.
A UN independent international commission of inquiry concluded last month that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza, where its blockade has also triggered a famine that has killed more than 450 Palestinians, including over 150 children.
Looking ahead
For humanitarian workers to operate safely, Sunghay said all parties to the conflict must respect their obligations under international law.
“Humanitarian aid workers are considered civilians unless they are actively participating,” he said, stressing that military actors must refrain from using civilian sites for military purposes.
He emphasized that accountability remains the key to preventing further violations.
“The mechanisms we have for accountability should be allowed to function, and member states should ensure there is no impunity,” he said.
Della Longa agreed, also urging donors and partners to invest in training and protection measures.
“We will continue pushing and advocating to make sure that these laws are respected by everyone,” he said.
