A United Nations report, published on Tuesday, says that Israel’s attacks on Gaza’s cultural sites, religious sites and educational facilities amount to violations of international human rights law and that some such attacks have constituted the crime against humanity of extermination.

The report of the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory including East Jerusalem and Israel says 403 of 564 school buildings in Gaza have been directly hit between October 7, 2023 and February 25, 2025.  These attacks have disrupted access to education for over 658,000 Gazan children. They have also resulted in civilian casualties, as many buildings were used as shelters. Higher education facilities have also been targeted. The report states, “At least 612 school staff were reported killed and 2,769 injured, as at 25 March 2025. In the same period, over 190 university academic staff were reported killed.”

There is evidence that Israeli forces seized educational facilities for military activity and used a university campus as a synagogue. The report also found one occasion where Hamas used a school for military purposes.

Both Jewish and Palestinian students within Israel have also been targeted for expressing dissent. The UN said that “Israeli authorities have particularly targeted female educators and students, intending to deter women and girls from activism in public places.” This violates the right to hold opinions, freedom of expression, and the right to education, as protected under Articles 18, 19 and 26 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The rights of women and girls were also endangered as protected under the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW).

The report details evidence of attacks on religious and cultural sites, with UNESCO verifying damage to 77 sites in Gaza. In doing this, Israel has failed to act in accordance with the Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict (1954 Hague Convention) and failed to respect rules on religious sites situated in occupied territory.

A Greek Orthodox church was hit by an airstrike while housing civilians. According to witnesses, no warnings were given, resulting in 19 civilian casualties, including 8 children. There are also reports of harassment of worshipers in East Jerusalem.

Apart from extermination, the report also outlines that Israel has committed war crimes of directing attacks against civilians, war crimes of willful killing, and unlawful annexation. It says, among other violations of international law, that Israel has acted contrary to the 2024 advisory opinions of the International Court of Justice. The report said that its actions may also amount to genocidal intent:

The Commission notes that, while the destruction of cultural property, including educational facilities, is not in itself a genocidal act, evidence of such conduct may nevertheless infer genocidal intent to destroy a protected group.

The UN Commission made a call for the Palestinian government to ensure that cultural sites are preserved and protected, and that no civilian objects are used for military purposes. It urged the Israeli government to end the attacks targeting protected sites and buildings, and “end its unlawful occupation of Palestinian territory.”