UN Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese has stated that the scale of destruction caused by Israel in Gaza is far greater than the devastation of Hiroshima during World War II. Presenting her report to the UN Human Rights Council on Thursday (July 3), Albanese said Israel has dropped 85,000 tons of explosives on Gaza, six times more destructive than the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima.
She accused arms companies of profiting from Gaza’s destruction by supplying Israel with advanced weaponry and described the ‘Gaza Humanitarian Foundation’ as a “death trap designed to kill or force the helpless to flee.”
Albanese’s report revealed that 57,130 Palestinians have been killed and 134,592 injured in Israeli attacks over the last 20 months. In the past 24 hours alone, 118 people were killed and 581 injured, including 12 seeking aid.
Highlighting the economic paradox of war, Albanese noted that the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange has gained 213 percent since October 2023, while Gaza has become “an ideal laboratory for the Israeli military-industrial complex to test new weapons, drones, and surveillance systems.”
She alleged that at least 48 arms manufacturers, banks, energy companies, technology firms, and universities are directly linked to Israel’s occupation economy. Albanese called on UN member states to impose a comprehensive arms embargo on Israel, suspend trade and investment relations, and hold complicit corporations accountable.
“This genocide is so visible and broadcast live that ignorance or neutrality is no longer acceptable,” she said, urging trade unions, civil society, lawyers, governments, and citizens to act through sanctions, boycotts, and accountability.
Concluding her speech, Albanese warned, “Humanity is facing its ultimate test today. If we turn our backs, history will not forgive us.”
