LONDON: Palestinian human rights organizations have accused UN Special Advisor on the Prevention of Genocide Alice Wairimu Nderitu of failing to warn of a possible genocide in Gaza. 

Sixteen groups have written to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres after Nderitu issued a statement in October that failed to criticize Israel for its military actions in Gaza, saying only “innocent civilians should never pay the price of a conflict for which they bear no responsibility.”

The signatories complained there had been a “glaring absence of any action in response to the sustained mass atrocities endured by Palestinians in Gaza,” and that the statement by Nderitu raised “significant concerns about the special adviser’s capability to execute her mandate with due effectiveness and impartiality.”

Nderitu’s role includes working on initiatives to safeguard people from crimes against humanity, genocide, war crimes and ethnic cleansing.

The groups, including the Palestinian Human Rights Council, said Nderitu had failed to engage with them on the issue of Gaza, canceled meetings with human rights advocates, failed to warn of a potential genocide in Gaza or speak out more broadly against Israel’s actions, and made no comment following the January findings by the International Court of Justice that there was a strong risk to Palestinian civilians in the enclave under the Genocide Convention.

The letter compared her to nine UN special rapporteurs who all highlighted the imminent risk of genocidal acts in Gaza on Oct. 19, eight others who did so on Nov. 2, and a further 41 UN independent experts who called for action to stop a genocide in Gaza on Nov. 16.

The letter continued, saying that “principles of genocide prevention must be universally applied, without making any special allowances or exceptions for anyone, including Israel.”

It added: “The foundation of the special adviser’s mandate is grounded in the lessons learned from past failure by the international community as a whole, including the UN, to undertake meaningful preventive efforts ahead of the genocide in Rwanda or Srebrenica.”

In January, Israel rejected allegations of genocidal behavior by its forces in Gaza. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu responded to the ICJ findings, saying: “The charge of genocide leveled against Israel is not only false, it’s outrageous, and decent people everywhere should reject it.”