Israel/Palestine: Devastating Civilian Toll as Parties Flout Legal Obligations

(Jerusalem) – Palestinian armed groups carried out a deadly assault on October 7, 2023, that killed several hundred Israeli civilians and led to Israeli counterstrikes that killed hundreds of Palestinians, Human Rights Watch said in releasing a questions and answers document about the international humanitarian law standards governing the current hostilities. As of October 8, the attacks by Palestinian armed groups killed more than 677 Israelis and foreign nationals, including civilians, according to Israeli sources cited by the United Nations. Subsequent Israeli airstrikes on Gaza left at least 413 Palestinians dead, the Palestinian Health Ministry in Gaza reported.