The U.N. human rights chief has expressed grave concerns over possible war crimes following the recovery of hundreds of bodies, including entire families, from the rubble of buildings destroyed by Israeli strikes in Gaza.
Volker Turk stated that the discovery of the remains, many of which are women and children, revives concerns previously raised in a 2024 U.N. report. That report found that Israeli strikes on residential buildings and other civilian sites in the early weeks of the conflict, which began nearly three years ago, may have violated international humanitarian law.
The Palestinian Civil Defence reports that over 630 bodies and human remains have been recovered from destroyed buildings across Gaza since November 2025. Palestinian authorities estimate that more than 8,000 people remain buried under the wreckage. Turk indicated that the recovered remains might represent only a fraction of the total, given that large areas of Gaza were flattened by Israeli bombing or subsequent demolition and clearance operations.
He also accused Israel of continuing to level some areas where its forces are deployed, with bulldozers operating without regard for the deceased beneath the rubble. The conflict, launched after Hamas's attacks on Israel in October 2023, has resulted in widespread destruction, estimated by the United Nations to have generated approximately 61 million tons of debris that could take seven years to clear.
Israel has consistently rejected allegations of deliberately targeting civilians, asserting that its actions align with international law during its operations against Hamas. The Hamas-led attacks in October 2023 resulted in 1,200 deaths in Israel, with 251 individuals taken hostage. In contrast, Gaza health authorities report over 73,000 Palestinian fatalities resulting from Israel's military campaign. Israel maintains that it endeavors to prevent civilian casualties, while accusing Hamas of using Gaza's civilian population as human shields, an accusation Hamas denies.
The U.N. rights chief urged international investigators to be granted access to all parts of Gaza to aid in evidence preservation, especially in light of ongoing legal proceedings examining wartime conduct. Turk's statement also noted that Israel has obstructed the entry of heavy machinery necessary for rubble removal. Francesca Albanese, the UN expert on Palestinian territories, has previously advocated for the collection of evidence and identification of human remains before full clearance commences. This month, 96 bodies, including 58 children and 23 women, were recovered from a single site in Gaza City's Zeitoun area.
