Beirut: Human Rights Watch said Thursday that the Israeli military’s appeal to residents of large areas of southern Lebanon to evacuate poses a “serious risk of violating the laws of war.”
Lebanon was drawn into the Middle East conflict when Iran-backed Hezbollah began firing rockets at Israel, Israel launched airstrikes across the country, and its troops entered border towns.
On Thursday, Israel renewed its warning to residents of hundreds of square kilometers (miles) of southern Lebanon to evacuate due to the military action.
“Calling everyone living south of the Litani (River) to evacuate immediately raises serious legal and humanitarian risks and fears for the safety of civilians,” said Ramzi Kais, Lebanon researcher at Human Rights Watch.
“How will the elderly, sick, and disabled be able to evacuate immediately? And how will their safety be guaranteed if they leave?” the rights group said in a statement. HRW said the “massive scale” of Israel’s appeal “raises concerns that it is not aimed at protecting civilians,” noting that millions of people live in the area.
It further stated that the call for evacuation “poses a serious risk of violating the laws of war.”
Lebanese officials said dozens of people have been killed and thousands displaced from their homes since Monday.
