UN rights chief says Gaza remains raise war crime concerns

More than 630 bodies and human remains have been recovered from beneath destroyed buildings across Gaza since November 2025. UN human rights chief Volker Türk said on Tuesday the remains appeared to include entire families, many women and children, raising fresh war crimes concerns. He said the finds may be only the tip of the iceberg. Palestinian authorities estimate more than 8,000 people remain buried. This month 96 bodies were recovered from one Zeitoun site, including 58 children and 23 women. Türk said it is heartbreaking that loved ones of the missing are only now having their worst fears confirmed. Türk called for international investigators to gain access to all of Gaza to preserve evidence. He said Israel has blocked heavy machinery needed to remove rubble and is leveling some areas with bulldozers with no respect for the dead under the rubble. On September 15, 2026, Israeli international law scholars called for an independent probe into suspected war crimes, including senior officials’ conduct. A 2024 UN report found early Israeli strikes on residential buildings may have violated international humanitarian law. Israel has repeatedly rejected allegations it deliberately targets civilians and says it acted in accordance with international law. A U.S.-brokered ceasefire ended full-scale fighting in October 2025 but has not halted regular Israeli strikes. The 2023 Hamas-led attacks killed 1,200 people in Israel and 251 were taken hostage, according to Israeli tallies. More than 73,000 Palestinians have been killed, according to Gaza health authorities. The UN says the assault generated around 61 million tons of wreckage that could take seven years to clear.