An Israeli foreign affairs spokesperson has caused outrage after claiming the government could not confirm reports that babies had been beheaded in a Hamas attack.
In a statement released earlier this week, the official told reporters that the government had not been able to independently verify the reports. The reports had originally been circulated via social media and had not been officially confirmed.
The claims had caused major public outrage in Israel, with many people accusing the government of not doing enough to protect innocent civilians. The official, however, maintained that Israel did not have definitive evidence to prove the reports were genuine.
The scandal has since escalated as a number of UN human rights experts have condemned the government for its lack of responsibility. In a statement released today, the human rights experts called for “immediate action” to be taken in order to investigate and potentially punish those responsible for, or complicit in, the alleged attack.
It remains unclear exactly what steps will be taken to investigate the allegations, but the incident has once again cast a spotlight on the fragile peace agreements in the region, and the devastating impact of the ongoing violence and conflict.
