OPT/Israel: Statement of solidarity with Palestinian human rights defenders at risk in the occupied Gaza Strip
Front Line Defenders expresses grave concern about the fate of Palestinian human rights defenders in the occupied Gaza Strip, who continue their essential human rights work and amplify the voices of Palestinian civilians while facing forced starvation as part of the ongoing genocide perpetrated by Israel’s authorities.
For more than 21 months, Palestinian human rights defenders in Gaza have continued their vital human rights work despite enduring forced displacement, starvation, violence, the risk of arbitrary detention and other constant threats, and the loss of loved ones. Today, the situation has reached an unprecedented level of brutality. The Israeli authorities’ use of starvation as a weapon of genocide has become increasingly evident across all sectors of society in Gaza, including its devastating impact on human rights defenders and in their ability to carry out their human rights work.
Front Line Defenders continues to receive urgent requests for protection and assistance from human rights defenders and other individuals in Gaza, which reflect the rapidly deteriorating humanitarian situation there. These requests highlight the urgent need for access to basic necessities, such as food, clean water and shelter, and also reveal the severe risks faced by human rights defenders as a result of ongoing attacks, displacement, and siege.
On 21 July 2025, a group of Palestinian journalists appeared in a video on social media platforms drinking water mixed with salt to stay conscious while reporting, due to a lack of food. The Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR) has issued a statement warning that Gaza is on the verge of meeting all three internationally recognised indicators of famine. “Information collected from the field and testimonies obtained by PCHR’s researchers, who are themselves part of the population subjected to Israel’s systematic starvation policy, indicate that the hunger crisis is rapidly worsening,” the statement read.
On 24 July 2025, major international news oulets, including the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) and Agence France-Presse (AFP), raised deep concerns for the safety of their journalists in Gaza, warning that they face the risk of starvation. “Journalists endure many deprivations and hardships in war zones. We are deeply alarmed that the threat of starvation is now one of them,” the statement said.
These alarming developments underscore the extreme risks faced by those who defend human rights in Gaza. Despite the systematic targeting of civilians and civil society since the beginning of the genocide in October 2023, Palestinian human rights defenders continue to support their communities and document violations, including war crimes committed by Israeli forces.
Since October 2023, Israeli authorities have carried out a sustained campaign of violence and deprivation resulting in mass civilian casualties, widespread displacement, and a humanitarian collapse in Gaza. According to the Health Ministry in Gaza, more than 58,000 Palestinians have been killed and over 139,000 were injured to date. Despite repeated appeals from the international community and binding directives from the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to cease operations constituting acts of genocide, Israeli forces have continued their assault.
In such a context, human rights defenders in Gaza have been systemically targeted by Israeli forces for carrying out peaceful and essential human rights work. Medical professionals have been killed, arbitrarily arrested, tortured, or imprisoned simply for treating the wounded or refusing to evacuate hospitals. Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya, for instance, was arrested and reportedly tortured for refusing to evacute Kamal Adwan Hospital, while Dr. Zeyad Tatari was killed in an Israeli airstrike while working at Al Awda Hospital. Dr Saeed Joda, who was the last remaining orthopaedic specialist in Gaza, was shot dead by an Israeli drone as he traveled between hospitals. Journalists documenting war crimes and amplifying the voices of Palestinians in Gaza have faced similar grave risks. Journalists Hamza Al-Dahdouh and Mustafa Thuraya were killed in a direct airstrike that targeted their vechile. Grassroots community organisers, who have cooked and distributed food to support displaced people in their local communities, have also been among those targeted.
Front Line Defenders is deeply concerned for the safety and lives of Palestinian human rights defenders in Gaza, particularly in the context of ongoing and deteriorating forced starvation. The escalating risks they face not only endanger them individually, but also risk silencing one of the last remaining direct and independent sources of information from within Gaza.
Front Line Defenders calls on the European Union, the United Kingdom, the United States, and countries neighbouring the Occupied Palestinian Territory, particularly Egypt and Jordan, to demand an immediate and sustained ceasefire; a halt to Israel’s use of forced starvation and other acts of genocide; and take all necessary measures to ensure the unimpeded delivery of humanitarian aid to Gaza under safe and dignified conditions, including water, food, and medical supplies. Palestinian human rights defenders must be able to carry out their legitimate and peaceful human rights work without fear of reprisal or attack.
