United Nations warns of consequences of flooding tunnels in Gaza

NEW YORK, Dec. 14 (YPA) – Spokesman for the United Nations Human Rights Office, Jeremy Lawrence, said on Thursday that “the flooding of Hamas tunnels in Gaza by Israeli forces will have long-term consequences for human rights.”

In an interview with the Russian “Novosti” agency, Lawrence stressed the need for Israeli forces to follow and abide by international laws while carrying out their operations inside the Gaza Strip.

He added: “We are concerned about a number of negative effects on human rights that will result from Israeli forces pumping tons of salt water underground, and a large part of these consequences will be long-term.”

Lawrence affirmed that under the laws of war, every attack launched must be justified in terms of military necessity, the amount of caution, and the proportionality of the severity of the attack to field necessities, and it may not be excessive in terms of the extent of damage to civilians or civilian objects.

He pointed out that military attacks must not affect or disrupt basic life facilities necessary for the survival of civilians or cause widespread and long-term environmental damage.

The “Wall Street Journal” reported on Tuesday that the occupation army began the process of pumping seawater into the Hamas tunnel complex in the Gaza Strip as part of ongoing efforts to destroy Hamas’ infrastructure.

YPA