Israel rejects a genocide finding and widens its war

I'm Ruby Jones and you're listening to seven am. The UN Commission of Inquiry has delivered its starkest assessment yet, finding that Israel has been and is committing genocide in Gaza. Israel has rejected the report, saying it's acting in self defense and takes steps to protect civilians. At the same time, Israel has begun a major ground defensive in Gaza City after weeks of bombardment and abroad, Israel's strike in the Qatari capital of Doha has rattled Katar's mediator role and

So this is a remarkable finding, coming now almost two years into this war. It's from some of the most respected jurists internationally and certainly in the UN system. It's led by Navi Pile, a South Ascan jurists who's deeply respected.

And known for her work.

And what the report says is that Israel has been and is committing genocide.

The goal of the Israeli government is abundantly clear as we continue to witness the destruction of Palestinians in Gaza. The Commission finds it is genocide.

Now, this is a huge statement, obviously, and there's a lot of backup that they have in their report.

They know it's going to be contended.

Israel, of course rejects charges of genocide, says, look where acting in self defense from US attacked US viciously on October southerns and continues to hold these really hostages.

The UN sides all of that is true.

But according to their analysis, they're saying on four of the five criteria by which you can charge genocide, they have absolute confirmation that Israel is conducting it.

On the specific intent of genocide, the Commission concludes that statements made by Israeli authorities are direct evidence of genocidal intent. The Commission also concludes that the pattern of conduct is circumstantial evidence for genocidal intent, and the genocidal intent was the only reasonable inference that could be drawn from a totality of the evidence.

The one that's really hard to prove always is intent. But they say, based on segnals from Israeli officials and the pattern of behavior bout Israelis, it looks like we can tell the intent, even if of course you can't seen someone's heart onlind Okay.

And so tell me more about Israel's reaction to report.

So the Israeli response has understandly been quite serially.

Israel has already responded to the report. A Foreign Ministry spokesperson called it a fake report, say it relies entirely on her mass falsehoods laundered and repeated by others.

These Raelis have been upset with you and on a number of factors around the glass of war. But what you'll hear from Israel and from its supporters, particularly here in the US, is that Israel teaks precautions to shield civilians. Right, so they will say, look, we have what they call a safe zone, and they say, if we wanted to meet on a side, you know, we could have been much more vicious.

But in fact we've been judicious. That's why it's.

Taken us now coming up on two years to conduct this war. We have been slower than we otherwise would have been. So how dare you accuse us of this?

What we're doing is we're telling the population because we're going to take over and destroy the ham Strongholder, one of the last two strongholds and the most important one that Hamas has left in the Gaza strip. We ask you to leave.

Something important to remember with the Israeli response is while they have largely criticized the UN's approach from its legal analysis to its aid delivery, these Reelis has collaborated with and participated in the UN. So they have admitted even from there end that the UN legal expertise is really.

Valuable in this instance.

And I point out particularly claims around the actual attacks of October seventh and what Hamas did. These Raelis were adminant that they're the international confirmation that Havas, among its various other acts of violence, also committed sexual assault against women on that day, and that was a very contested claim. The Israelis brought in UN experts, and UN experts said, you know what, yes, this claim is true. Hamas has permitted sexual assaults. So when it's convenient for these Raelis,

Well, the UN report comes as Israel heavily bombed Gaza City overnight, with Israel's Defense Minister Israel Katz saying Gaza is burning. We're getting on confirmed reports from the US news side Axios and the Jerusalem Post that the military has now launched its ground defensive to occupy the entire city.

And just as this report was published, is Rael launched a ground offensive in Gaza City. So tell me what we're seeing play up there at this moment.

It's hard to say that anything is shocking this far into the wall. And you know, I've done some reporting from Plazas City and just imagine the way it's been level than the way people are been living there now.

It's hard to imaginating.

Its shocking, but this movie is still it's a different level of fighting.

A military official confirmed the idea is moving towards the center of Gaza City. Israeli Defense Minister Israel Cats release this statement Monday night. The idea for striking with an iron fist at the terror infrastructure.

Really it's a brown vision that is coming amid and after heavy, heavy, heavy bombing. It's going to be kind of street the street, house to house. There's tons of pleasants people, so there Palestinians who are terrified, many of them women and children. And this is you know, this is expected to be probably the bloodiest battle of the war. It's something that Israel's own security apparatus has been quite adamant.

It might feel backlash.

From the Palestinians that helps sum Us. It might heel international coordination. So from the Israeli security operatists, they are saying still that they're trying to slow roll.

This is fault on Plaza City.

But it is a major offensive and again will probably be the biggest offensive intercrowded city throughout this entire war. There's still just hundreds of thousands of people still in the city as the fighting begains.

Okay, and all of this comes as the US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has been in the region. He met with Benjamin Netnyahu at the beginning of the week. So tell me about the reason for his trip.

Well, haamask can surrender tonight if they want, lay down their way weapons. The problem is a terrorist group, barbaric group whose stated mission is the destruction of the Jewish state. So we're not counting on that from happening.

Secretary Rubio, who important remember is also President Trump's National Security advisor.

Secretary Rubio is.

Representing the Trump administration on the ground in the Middle East. After Israel's truck, a major US ally got there in the middle of last week where it targeted something US leaders unsuccessfully. So he's in the regent's private say we don't want to see this explode. But it's also shows solidarity both with Israel and with Patter.

As much as we may wish that there'd be a sort of a peaceful diplomatic way to end it and will continue to explore and be dedicated to it, we also have to be prepared for the possibility that that's not going to happen.

While it remains basically all one player side, it is the enabler, the backer, the diplomatic and military supporter of it. Sale they want to say, look, we're trying to prevent conflict from spiring.

Other control.

Coming up, how Israel's attack on Doha has left Arab leaders questioning if they can still rely on the United States.

So we've got breaking news from the Middle East, and this is significant. Moments ago, the Israeli military saying that it conducted a strike against senior Hamas leadership not in Gaza, but in the capital city of Doha and Qatar Akbar.

As you mentioned, just over a week ago, Israel launched an attack on a residential neighborhood in the Qatari capital Doha. Tell me a bit more about what happened.

Yeah, is a targeted attack on the leadership of Hamas in the center of the Katrie capital of Doha, in a commercial district surrounded by luxury skysc does embassy's fancy supermarkets, in the middle of a weekday afternoon.

At noon today, I convened the heads of Israel security organizations and authorized a surgical precision strike under terrorist chiefs of Ramas.

These really said they were talking specifically two figures Hamas leaders, Khalil al Haya and Khalige Mitchell, among others. Those are two of the most senior Hammas leaders. Neither was actually killed. But it really raised this question of why these Radis would do that while As simultaneously pursuing negotiations with Hamas broke out by the US, in which these Hamas leaders are kind of top decision makers for any possible deal.

Well, yeah, was the goal here to disrupt states by negotiations.

Suddenly there's been a lot of suspicion on the American side, on the Israelis side, particularly you know from hostage families is really hostages, twenty of them still alive, are still in Gaza, and a lot of them are saying why have we not ended this war and cut a deal to bring out people home.

You must to understand every second in captivity is dangerous. I didn't think that I could make able alive.

One of the most kind of chilling messages about the Gaza City offensive came from Noah ar the Money, one of the Freedom's really hostages, where she said I knew what it felt like to be in this really hostage in Gaza as we were ramping up fighting.

Why are I be cutting a deal instead?

Today I come before you to say, do not let the darkness take over work for to get everyone home now.

Prime Minister at Niaghu has said two things at once. He said, I will only accept the deal that is really really tilted towards Israel while it's so prioritize the hostages, but also his saying I'm going to target and eliminate her master's leadership everywhere. So even after this striking cucker, they didn't say from the Israeli side that that was it. They said, where going to keep going off for hermass leaders?

That that happening.

And in response to that attack in Doha, dozens of Arab and Islamic leaders they met in Qatar on Monday, So tell me a bit about who was there and what was discussed.

So this was a meeting that brought together kind of the shocked countries across the region, many of the US partners that did not think the US would commit Israel to go ahead with an attack like this.

We gathered today on a very somber and sorrowful occasion when the brotherly Islamic state of Cuta was treacherously targeted by an aggressor who why did international law without fear of any consequence.

So you had countries like Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, your countries are close to the US.

You also had Iran.

The idea was Cutter really felt its sovereignty, its role in the region was questioning nob It never has been before. Cutter has been climbing this neutral ground. I mean it's hosted from US because the US asked it to. So they're really wondering. We thought that role would shield us.

Now they're sending a negotiating team on one head, and they're trying to eviscerate the negotiation on the other. This has been the practice of the Israelis to this day. If bringing the war to a halt will be met with the release of their captives, it is not what they want. They aim to turn Gaza into a wasteland uninhabitable by the Palestinians.

The summit did bring kind of fiery speeches from a lot of these leaders, it didn't bring significant action, and it seems that for now some of these leaders in the Ireland majority world are still hoping that full size to President Trump can overwhelm his preference and his support for Israel, so kind of inspire him to rein in Prime Ministern and Yahoo. And we have some grounds to believe that, right compared to say President Biden a year ago.

And Katar is obviously a key US ally in the region. There's the largest US military facility in the Middle East, and it's long played this role in trying to mediate diplomacy in the area. So to what extent is all of that at risk now?

So I even few fund the Hamas leadership and fatter Right, the Fatteries manage their presence, their safety, their security, They ticket extremely seriously. It's not that these Hamas leaders are kind of running around the Pefrey capital it scot Free. It's very much seen as this is a process, this is a special role that we will play, and of course in that capacity, they've also had really close links

Ruan government in Gaza.

I think Cutter is facing a bit of a bit of an identity crisis. It's certainly looking to see if there are others in its neighborhood who could shore that more, and that could mean Iran, with which it's always kind of had an open dialogue. I don't think it's likely

Well Appa, thank you so much for your time today.

Thank you.

Also in the news today, US President Donald Trump has confirmed he plans to meet Prime Minister Anthony Alberzi for the first time soon. Albenzi is due to visit the United States next week for the Meeting of View and

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