The Hague, Netherlands - Amnesty International on Thursday accused Israel of committing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza since the start of the war last year, saying a new report was a "wake-up call" for the international community.

The London-based rights organization said its findings were based on "dehumanizing and genocidal statements by the Israeli government and military officials," satellite images documenting devastation, fieldwork, and ground reports from Gazans.

"Month after month, Israel has treated Palestinians in Gaza as a subhuman group unworthy of human rights and dignity, demonstrating its intent to physically destroy them," Amnesty chief Agnes Callamard said in a statement.

"Our damning findings must serve as a wake-up call to the international community: this is genocide. It must stop now," she added.

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The Palestinian group Hamas launched an unprecedented attack inside southern Israel on October 7, 2023, triggering a deadly Israeli military offensive as Israeli officials vowed to crush the militants.

"There is absolutely no doubt that Israel has military objectives. But the existence of military objectives does not negate the possibility of a genocidal intent," Callamard told AFP at a press conference in The Hague.

The 300-page report points to incidents where there "was no Hamas presence or any other military objectives".

It cites 15 air strikes in Gaza between October 7, 2023, and April 20, which killed 334 civilians, including 141 children, for which the group found "no evidence that any of these strikes were directed at a military objective".

In addition to tens of thousands of deaths and physical and psychological trauma, the report also points to the conditions on the ground, where it said Palestinians are subjected to "malnutrition, hunger and diseases" and exposed to a "slow, calculated death".

"States that transfer arms to Israel violate their obligations to prevent genocide under the convention and are at risk of becoming complicit", Callamard added during the press conference.

Since the start of the war, Israel – with the aid of over $20 billion in US weapons – has slaughtered at least 44,532 Palestinians in Gaza, mostly civilians, according to the territory's health ministry, deemed reliable by the UN.

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However, many experts believe this to be a gross underestimate, with the true toll estimated to be upwards of 186,000 as of July.

Israel has denied the allegations of genocide, but just last month, a UN Special Committee came to the same conclusion as Amnesty International as they accused Israel of "using starvation as a method of war" during its siege of Gaza.

Israel is also facing a genocide case launched by South Africa in the International Court of Justice, while the International Criminal Court has issued arrest warrants for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for "crimes against humanity and war crimes" in Gaza.