Human Rights Watch asserted on Thursday that Israel's plan to demolish infrastructure in Gaza and concentrate Palestinian civilians in tight areas amounts to genocide, calling for an end to military and diplomatic support for Israel and the imposition of sanctions on its officials.

The organization said in a statement that "the Israeli authorities, who have been preventing the entry of food, medicine, and humanitarian aid for more than 75 days, have devised a plan that includes razing residential buildings to the ground and displacing Gaza's residents to a narrow humanitarian zone, unless an agreement is reached with Hamas by mid-May."

She added, "Addressing the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Gaza, resulting from the illegal blockade, escalating forced displacement, and widespread destruction, requires a more effective international response, particularly from the United States, France, Germany, the European Union, and the United Kingdom."

On May 7, Israeli Army Radio revealed a plan promoted by Benjamin Netanyahu's government to distribute aid, aimed at accelerating the evacuation of Palestinian civilians from the northern Gaza Strip.

According to the radio, the plan stipulates that aid distribution be restricted to the city of Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, a move that would force civilians from northern Gaza to relocate to the south. Distribution centers would be closed once the Palestinians have fully relocated to the south.

Human Rights Watch called on all parties to the 1948 Genocide Convention to do more to prevent further atrocities in Gaza, "including by ending arms sales, military aid, and diplomatic support to Israel, imposing targeted sanctions on Israeli officials, and reviewing and considering suspending bilateral agreements with Israel."

The human rights organization called for support for international accountability efforts against Israel, including the enforcement of arrest warrants issued by the International Criminal Court against Prime Minister Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant.

Since the beginning of the war of extermination on October 7, 2023, the Gaza Strip has witnessed systematic demolitions by the Israeli army, targeting thousands of residential buildings and civilian facilities across the Strip.

Local and international reports indicate that the Israeli army is using heavy military equipment and explosive belts to raz entire neighborhoods to the ground, targeting infrastructure including homes, schools, hospitals, water and electricity facilities, rendering vast areas uninhabitable.

“Israeli officials are bragging about their plans to cram Gaza’s two million residents into an ever-smaller area while making the rest of the territory uninhabitable,” said Federico Borriello, interim executive director at Human Rights Watch. “These statements should be a wake-up call in London, Brussels, Paris, and Washington. Israel’s blockade has gone beyond military tactics to become a tool of genocide.”

He added: "When Israel's plan to demolish Gaza's infrastructure is coupled with the systematic destruction of homes, schools, hospitals, orchards, water and sanitation facilities, and the use of starvation as a weapon of war, it constitutes acts that amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity, including genocide."

The 1948 Genocide Convention obliges states parties to use all reasonable means at their disposal to prevent genocide, according to Human Rights Watch.

The organization stressed that "countries such as the United States, Britain, France, and Germany, which have close ties to or influence over the Israeli government, risk legal liability for their failure to take action to prevent genocide in Gaza."

She pointed out that "the International Court of Justice ruled in 2007 that the obligation to prevent genocide applies beyond a state's geographical borders, wherever it can take effective steps to fulfill this obligation, which doubles the moral and legal responsibility of these states regarding what is happening in Gaza."

With American support, Israel has been committing genocide in Gaza since October 7, 2023, leaving approximately 173,000 Palestinians dead and wounded, most of them children and women, and more than 11,000 missing.

Since March 2, Israel has closed the crossings, preventing any humanitarian aid from entering Gaza, plunging the territory into a state of famine, according to the government media office in Gaza.