Amnesty: Hamas committed crimes against humanity

International Desk

In a new report, Amnesty International said that the Palestinian armed group Hamas committed crimes against humanity in its attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023, and committed similar crimes against hostages held in Gaza.

The human rights group said the crimes included murder, genocide, unlawful detention, torture, rape, sexual violence and other inhumane acts. According to the group’s analysis, the attacks were part of a widespread and planned attack against the civilian population.

The report, published on Wednesday, examines the nature of the attacks, communications between the attackers, statements from Hamas and other armed groups, and extensive video and photographic evidence. Amnesty interviewed 70 people—including survivors of the attacks, families of the victims, forensic experts, and medical workers. The organization also visited several of the attack sites.

Amnesty claims that some communications from fighters participating in the attack contained instructions to target civilians. The organization said that the attackers were based on these instructions and carried out planned attacks on civilians.

Hamas has denied the report, saying it has committed no crimes against humanity and has called on Amnesty to retract the report’s contents. Israel has not yet commented.

According to Israeli government figures and Amnesty, the October 7, 2023 attack killed nearly 1,200 people—most of them civilians. The attackers took more than 250 people hostage and took them to Gaza, including children. 168 hostages were later rescued alive through ceasefire negotiations or Israeli military operations. The rest died in custody, and their bodies were returned to Israel—the remains of one are still missing.

The attack triggered Israel’s massive military operation in Gaza. The ongoing war has killed more than 70,000 Palestinians so far—most of them civilians—and reduced much of Gaza to rubble, displacing a large number of people.

Another Amnesty International report, published in December 2024, accused Israel of genocide in its military campaign in Gaza. Israel rejected the allegations, saying its war was against Hamas, not the Palestinian people.