3:17 PM ET, November 16, 2023
A US official says the United States has not determined whether Israel has violated international humanitarian law
From CNN’s Jennifer Hansler
State Department spokesman Matt Miller said Thursday that the United States had not made any assessment whether Israel had “violated international humanitarian law.”
“We are constantly monitoring the facts as they develop,” Miller said at a news conference.
The Israeli forces launched military operations in the Gaza Strip, which led to… More than 11 thousand people died According to the Palestinian Ministry of Health.
The forces were active in and around Al-Shifa Hospital after claiming that there was a Hamas command and control center in tunnels under the complex.
Under the Geneva ConventionMedical facilities must not be attacked, but they can lose that protection if they are “used to commit acts harmful to the enemy, outside the scope of their humanitarian duties.”
Miller said on Tuesday that the US government had not made a formal assessment of whether Israel complies with international humanitarian law, but said he “would not speak to internal deliberations within the department.”
Miller also said the United States pressed all parties to adhere to their obligations under international humanitarian law “to take feasible precautions to reduce the risk of harm to civilians, and we urge that all feasible steps be taken to mitigate harm to civilians.”
Although he said the United States has not officially assessed that Israel is violating the law, Miller He echoed Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s comments “In his (Blinken’s) view, too many Palestinian civilians have been killed as a result of this conflict.”
“Far too many children have been killed as a result of this conflict,” Miller said.