United States | News & Politics

The United States on Thursday rejected an accusation by Human Rights Watch (HRW) that "Israel" was committing "acts of genocide" in Gaza by targeting water infrastructure. The claim was part of a report released by the New York-based organization earlier in the day.

"When it comes to a determination of something like genocide, the legal standard is just incredibly high, and so the finding in this scenario we just disagree with," State Department spokesman Vedant Patel told reporters. "That does not take away from the fact that there is a dire humanitarian crisis in Gaza."