Scholars’ group cites mass civilian killings, starvation, and official incitement as evidence, while Israel rejects the genocide label.
The International Association of Genocide Scholars (IAGS), the largest professional organization of scholars studying genocide, has declared that Israel’s actions in Gaza meet the legal definition of genocide. The group, which has around 500 members worldwide, passed a three-page resolution with the support of 86% of members who voted. The resolution states that Israel’s “policies and actions in Gaza meet the legal definition of genocide” and calls on the government to immediately halt its campaign.
The resolution outlines a range of acts it says constitute genocide, including deliberate attacks against civilians, starvation, deprivation of humanitarian aid, sexual violence, and the forced displacement of the population. It cites “Israeli governmental leaders, war cabinet ministers, and senior army officers” who “have made explicit statements of ‘intent to destroy,’ characterizing Palestinians in Gaza as a whole as enemies and ‘human animals’ and stating the intention of inflicting ‘maximum damage’ on Gaza, ‘flattening Gaza,’ and turning Gaza into ‘hell.’”
It further references Israeli officials’ support for a plan proposed by U.S. President Donald Trump to expel all Palestinians from Gaza, which the scholars contend “amounts to ethnic cleansing.” The resolution concludes by urging Israel to comply with provisional measures ordered earlier this year by the International Court of Justice and to “support a process of repair and transitional justice that will afford democracy, freedom, dignity, and security for all people of Gaza.”
Melanie O’Brien, president of IAGS and professor of international law at the University of Western Australia, told The Guardian that the resolution is “a definitive statement from experts in the field of genocide studies that what is going on on the ground in Gaza is genocide.” She also told the Associated Press, “People who are experts in the study of genocide can see this situation for what it is.”
The determination by IAGS comes just days after the United Nations-backed Integrated Food Security Phase Classification Initiative (IPC) declared that famine has taken hold in Gaza. The IPC warned that conditions are projected to worsen between mid-August and the end of September 2025, with famine expected to spread to Deir al-Balah and Khan Younis. According to the report, “Nearly a third of the population (641,000 people) are expected to face catastrophic conditions (IPC Phase 5), while those in emergency (IPC Phase 4) will likely rise to 1.14 million (58 percent). Acute malnutrition is projected to continue worsening rapidly.”
The Gaza Health Ministry currently estimates that more than 330 people, including over 120 children, have already died from severe hunger under the blockade that has for months obstructed humanitarian aid. The broader death toll from Israel’s offensive has climbed above 63,000, the ministry reported, noting that around half of those killed were women and children. The ministry is staffed by medical professionals and, despite being part of Gaza’s Hamas-run government, its figures are considered the most reliable by the United Nations and independent experts. Israel disputes the numbers but has not provided an alternative count.
The war began on October 7, 2023, when Hamas-led militants killed some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducted 251 others. Forty-eight hostages remain in Gaza, Israel says, with around 20 believed to be alive. Since then, Israel’s offensive has leveled much of Gaza and displaced the majority of its more than two million residents.
Israel has strongly rejected the genocide accusation. The Foreign Ministry said in a statement: “The IAGS has set a historic precedent—for the first time, ‘Genocide Scholars’ accuse the very victim of genocide—despite Hamas’s attempted genocide against the Jewish people. Disgraceful.” Israeli officials maintain that their campaign targets Hamas, not civilians, and blame Hamas for prolonging the conflict by refusing to surrender and release the hostages.
The IAGS resolution adds to a growing chorus of organizations and governments that have used the term genocide to describe the situation in Gaza. In July, two Israeli human rights groups, B’Tselem and Physicians for Human Rights–Israel, declared that Israel is committing genocide, marking the first time local Jewish-led organizations used the charge. International groups have also raised the accusation, and South Africa has formally accused Israel of violating the Genocide Convention at the International Court of Justice. The case is ongoing and could take years, though the court has already ordered Israel to take steps to prevent acts that may amount to genocide and to allow humanitarian aid into Gaza.
Founded in 1994, the International Association of Genocide Scholars has previously determined that China’s treatment of Uyghurs and Myanmar’s persecution of the Rohingya constitute genocide. The group also said in 2006 that statements by Iran’s then-president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad calling for Israel to be “wiped off the map” demonstrated genocidal intent. Its latest resolution places Israel alongside countries accused of carrying out some of the gravest crimes recognized under international law.
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