Saudi Arabia Welcomes UN Report That Finds Israel Committing Genocide in Gaza
Riyadh, September 16, 2025. Saudi Arabia has welcomed a new United Nations inquiry report which concluded that Israel is committing genocide in the Gaza Strip. The Saudi Foreign Ministry said the findings confirm the severity of documented abuses, and it renewed calls for international intervention and the implementation of the two-state solution to end the suffering of Palestinians.
The report was released by the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and Israel, which was established by the UN Human Rights Council. According to the investigators, Israel has committed four out of the five acts defined under the 1948 Genocide Convention. These include killing, causing serious bodily or mental harm, deliberately inflicting conditions of life intended to destroy Palestinians in whole or in part, and measures designed to prevent births.
In its official statement, the Saudi Foreign Ministry said the report contains facts about Israeli forces committing crimes of genocide against defenseless civilians in Gaza. The statement stressed that the findings clearly show the violations and atrocities being carried out against the Palestinian people.
Saudi Arabia also called on the international community to take serious and practical steps. It urged countries to enforce existing international resolutions, to push forward the two-state solution that envisions a Palestinian state alongside Israel, and to end the long-lasting suffering of the Palestinian population.
Since the war escalated after Hamas’s attack on Israel in October 2023, Gaza has faced catastrophic losses. The report estimates that nearly 65,000 Palestinians have been killed, with women and children making up a large share of the victims. It also highlights the widespread destruction of homes, schools, hospitals, and infrastructure. In addition, Gaza’s residents face shortages of food, clean water, and medicine, along with the spread of diseases and mass displacement, making much of the area unliveable.
The head of the commission, former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay, said that both the actions on the ground and the statements of senior Israeli officials provide direct and circumstantial evidence of genocidal intent. The report holds senior political and military leaders responsible for either failing to prevent such acts or openly inciting them.
Israel has strongly rejected the report. The Israeli government has dismissed the findings as biased and false, insisting that its military actions are carried out in self-defense following the October 2023 Hamas attacks. Officials argue that the accusations are based on flawed or misleading information.
Legal experts note that while the UN commission does not have the authority to enforce its findings, the report can influence proceedings at international bodies such as the International Court of Justice or the International Criminal Court. The use of the word genocide carries heavy legal and moral weight, and the report could increase pressure on world governments to take stronger positions.
Saudi Arabia’s welcoming of the report reflects a wider frustration among Arab and Muslim countries. Many see the Gaza crisis as a symbol of international inaction and a test of global justice. Analysts believe that Riyadh’s public support for the findings could encourage more nations to take tougher diplomatic stances, to reconsider arms transfers, and to push for greater humanitarian access to Gaza.
