Genocide Scholars Declare Israel’s Actions in Gaza Genocide

Smoke and flames rise from a residential building hit by an Israeli strike, in Gaza City July 21, 2025.

The world’s largest academic association of genocide scholars has passed a resolution declaring that Israel’s actions in Gaza meet the legal definition of genocide, its president confirmed on Monday.

Eighty-six per cent of voting members of the 500-strong International Association of Genocide Scholars (IAGS) supported the resolution, which states that Israel’s “policies and actions in Gaza” fall under Article II of the 1948 UN Genocide Convention.

Israel’s Foreign Ministry denounced the resolution as “disgraceful” and accused the group of echoing “Hamas’ campaign of lies.” Israel insists its military operations constitute self-defence and has rejected accusations of genocide. The country is currently contesting a genocide case at the International Court of Justice in The Hague.

Israel began its offensive in Gaza in October 2023 after Hamas fighters attacked Israeli communities, killing 1,200 people and taking more than 250 hostages. Since then, Israeli strikes have killed more than 63,000 people, destroyed large parts of the territory, and displaced nearly the entire population at least once. A UN-backed hunger monitor has warned of man-made famine in parts of Gaza, a claim Israel denies.

The three-page resolution urges Israel to “immediately cease all acts that constitute genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity against Palestinians in Gaza,” listing deliberate attacks on civilians, starvation, denial of aid, sexual and reproductive violence, and forced displacement among its findings.

The statement also acknowledges that the 7 October Hamas attack constituted international crimes.

Melanie O’Brien, president of IAGS and professor of international law at the University of Western Australia, said: “This is a definitive statement from experts in genocide studies that what is happening in Gaza is genocide. There is no justification for the commission of war crimes, crimes against humanity, or genocide – not even self-defence.”

The UN Genocide Convention, adopted in 1948 after the Holocaust, defines genocide as acts committed “with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group.” It obliges all states to act to prevent and stop genocide.

Since its founding in 1994, IAGS has passed nine resolutions recognising historical or ongoing cases of genocide. It is considered the largest academic body in the field, publishing a journal and organising regular international conferences.

The resolution was welcomed by Hamas officials in Gaza as a “prestigious scholarly stance” that places a “legal and moral obligation on the international community” to stop the war and hold Israeli leaders accountable.

Sergey Vasiliev, professor of international law at the Open University in the Netherlands, said the decision reflected a growing consensus: “This legal assessment has become mainstream within academia, particularly in the field of genocide studies.”

Several international rights organisations and Israeli NGOs have previously accused Israel of committing genocide. Just last week, hundreds of UN staff urged the High Commissioner for Human Rights to explicitly describe the Gaza war as an unfolding genocide.