After two years, Amnesty International has concluded for the first time that Hamas and other armed Palestinian groups committed war crimes and crimes against humanity, including murder and torture, on and after October 7, 2023.
The global human rights movement’s unequivocal condemnation of Hamas’s crimes against humanity is striking, considering its historical reticence to condemn Palestinian actors outright.
Its 173-page report applies the ICC’s Article 7 criteria and concludes that Hamas leadership intended to attack civilians.
Based on video footage, testimonies, and other evidence, Amnesty International found that, while Israeli forces killed some civilians on October 7, the vast majority of those who died were killed by armed Palestinians.
Amnesty also said it considered all those taken to Gaza to be people “unlawfully detained as hostages,” and that all of these individuals “were subjected to psychological abuse.”
However, while it admitted there is documented evidence of sexual abuse, “it could not reach conclusions on the scope or scale of the sexual violence.”
Hamas's Izzadin al-Qassam Brigades 'chiefly responsible' for massacre, Amnesty Intl. finds
The human rights movement also said it found no evidence that Hamas or other Palestinian armed groups gave orders to their fighters to commit acts of sexual violence during the attacks. Nevertheless, the admission that Hamas and other groups committed rape, gang rape, sexual assault, and sexual violence stands out, given Amnesty’s relative silence on the matter over the last two years.
Amnesty also noted that multiple parties participated in the atrocities on October 7, including the Izzadin al-Qassam Brigades, the Al-Quds Brigades, and the Al-Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades, as well as hundreds of Palestinians in civilian clothing. The explicit naming of the actors involved differs from Amnesty’s previous comments.
The report placed the blame for the massacre “primarily” on Hamas’s so-called military wing, the Izzadin al-Qassam Brigades, accusing it of being “chiefly responsible.”
By and by, Amnesty did condemn Israel for its alleged refusal to cooperate with the investigation, including blocking access to sites, victims, medical professionals, and evidence.
It also noted that the reluctance of many survivors and witnesses to speak to Amnesty International researchers and the limited forensic evidence collected by Israeli authorities impacted the success of its investigation. Nevertheless, the organization said, it was still able to collect substantial evidence to inform its analysis.
Amnesty called on Hamas to investigate serious violations of international humanitarian law committed by its forces during the October 7, 2023, attacks and since, including crimes under international law. Further, it urged the terrorist organization to do so with respect to the hostages.
Moreover, the global human rights movement encouraged Hamas to identify and remove anyone suspected of involvement in such violations and crimes from its ranks, and to publicly acknowledge and denounce the grave breaches of international humanitarian law.
Amnesty asked Israel to “end violations of international law against Palestinians in the OPT and Palestinian citizens of Israel and take concrete steps toward ensuring justice and accountability for violations and crimes committed by Israeli forces, including genocide and apartheid.”
UN findings vs Amnesty conclusions
In contrast to the UN’s Report on the October 7 attacks and their aftermath (June 2024), Amnesty’s report is much more explicit when it comes to sexual violence committed by Hamas.
For example, it concludes that Hamas engaged in sexual violence against hostages in captivity, and that sexual abuse, including rape and gang rape, was perpetrated on October 7.
In juxtaposition, while the UN reports have acknowledged possible cases of sexual violence on October 7, the UN has not concluded that these acts were widespread or systematic.
Additionally, Amnesty explicitly stated that Hamas committed crimes against humanity, whereas the UN said that some of Hamas’s actions may have amounted to crimes against humanity.
Amnesty also based its findings on video evidence, insignia, weapons identification, and Hamas’s own media to attribute actions on and after October 7 to the terrorist organization. In contrast, the UN often more vaguely attributed actions to “armed Palestinian groups.”
Lastly, Amnesty determined that Hamas intentionally targeted civilians in a coordinated, multi-location attack, and rejected Hamas’s claim that civilians were killed by “rogue civilians.” The UN report said instead that some of the killings were “indiscriminate” and it was “not always possible to determine intent.”