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A group of nearly two dozen UN human rights experts has called for all UN members to end weapons transfers to Israel, condemning Israel’s bombing and invasion of Lebanon, especially after the Israeli military’s massive bombardment of the country after the U.S. and Iran announced a temporary ceasefire deal last week.
“We are witnessing the continuing utmost contempt for the international legal order, for diplomacy, and above all for the lives of civilians and the environment in Lebanon,” the experts said in a statement. “Israel has chosen the very moment a ceasefire was announced — one that its Pakistani mediator stated included Lebanon — to unleash the largest coordinated wave of strikes on the country since 1980.”
Over the course of just 10 minutes on April 8, just hours after the ceasefire announcement, Israel struck over 150 sites across Lebanon. Not only did Israel strike civilian infrastructure in densely populated parts of Beirut, the military also caused “severe” environmental consequences that released pollutants into the air and water, and destroyed ecosystems and released greenhouse gases, the group said.
This attack killed at least 303 people and wounded 1,150 others. Hundreds are still stuck under rubble, the experts said. They are among the over 2,000 people killed in Lebanon since Israel’s most recent escalation beginning March 2, which has displaced over 1 million people from their homes and risks spiraling into another de facto annexation campaign by Israeli authorities.
“This is not self-defence. It is a blatant violation of the UN Charter, a deliberate destruction of prospects for peace, and an affront to multilateralism and the UN-based international order,” the statement went on. The group said Israel has “repeatedly violated Lebanon’s sovereignty” since Israel and Hezbollah reached a ceasefire deal in November 2024.
The statement was signed by 23 UN experts specializing in a range of human rights issues, including Mai Soto, UN special rapporteur on human rights in Iran, and Francesca Albanese, UN special rapporteur for the occupied Palestinian territories.
The experts call for all member states to urgently suspend all arms transfers to Israel while there is continued evidence that it is violating international law. They call on Israel to end its military operations in Lebanon, and urge the U.S. specifically to pressure Israel to end its attacks against civilians in Lebanon.
Experts also warn that the U.S.’s blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, launched this week, “is an act of war that has further destabilised the situation” amid crucial talks to extend the ceasefire.
The statement renews calls for an arms embargo that UN human rights experts frequently made amid the most intense phases of Israel’s genocide in Gaza.
Rights advocates and activists have continued these calls in response to the joint U.S.-Israeli war on Iran, in which U.S. and Israeli forces have killed over 3,000 people thus far, including over 1,700 civilians, counting over 200 children, according to human rights group HRANA.
On Wednesday, the U.S. Senate is slated to vote on legislation introduced by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont) to block the sale of half a billion dollars’ worth of 1,000-pound bombs and bulldozers to Israel. The legislation is not expected to pass, however, as previous similar efforts by Sanders have failed.
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