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Palestinian Territory – Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor announced the closure of its office in the Gaza Strip after nearly 15 years of operation, as a precautionary step following the recent Israeli threats, defamation, and punitive measures against the organisation and its staff.
These measures come in response to Euro-Med Monitor’s professional documentation of the genocide Israel has been committing in the Gaza Strip since October 2023.
In recent weeks, especially following the release of a report detailing sexual violence crimes against Palestinians in Israeli prisons and detention centres, Israeli officials, government entities, ministers, public figures, and major propaganda channels have initiated a coordinated campaign of incitement and defamation targeting Euro-Med Monitor and its staff.
The campaign aimed to connect independent human rights efforts to baseless political accusations, risking a dangerous environment that could result in their direct or indirect targeting. This risk is heightened by past instances of attacks on human rights and humanitarian workers, as well as civilians in general.
The Israeli campaign aimed to target Euro-Med Monitor’s management and staff through both individual and collective smear campaigns, accompanied by ongoing incitement to take action against them. In certain instances, this escalated to direct death threats against prominent members due to their active role in documenting genocide in the Gaza Strip.
At the end of May, Israeli authorities implemented punitive measures restricting the movement of 40 individuals associated with Euro-Med Monitor, including board members, staff, volunteers, and partners. These measures are part of the broader official and unofficial pressure Israel is applying to prevent the organisation from documenting Israeli violations.
The closure of Euro-Med Monitor’s Gaza office does not mean a suspension of its work or a retreat from its moral and professional responsibilities to document violations, support victims, and preserve evidence and testimonies in accordance with recognised professional and legal standards. Rather, this decision is a response to valid safety concerns, especially given the increasing Israeli threats and the role of official Israeli entities leading the campaign.
Euro-Med Monitor holds the Israeli authorities accountable for the safety of its entire team, staff, volunteers, and partners both inside and outside the Gaza Strip. All concerned parties should swiftly condemn Israel’s conduct and apply maximum pressure to safeguard human rights workers, stopping any forms of persecution, targeting, incitement, and defamation against them.
The Israeli campaign targeting Euro-Med Monitor is part of a larger pattern of suppressing human rights defenders, journalists, and humanitarian workers in Gaza, with the goal of silencing and eliminating independent voices that report serious violations and highlight their effects on victims and survivors.
Israel’s punitive measures against the organisation, its personnel, and affiliates are an attack on the rights to defend human rights, access information, and document violations. These measures also pose a serious threat to international accountability efforts for crimes committed in the Gaza Strip.
The United Nations, especially the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights and the relevant Special Procedures, as well as the European Union and States Parties to the Geneva Conventions, must act urgently to publicly condemn the Israeli campaign of incitement and persecution. They must press Israel to halt any retaliatory actions against human rights organisations and their personnel, ensuring they can operate freely, safely, and without fear of intimidation or punishment.
Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor affirms that its work did not start because conditions were safe or easy, and it will not end under any circumstances because Israeli authorities have decided to raise the cost of that work.
