LONDON: Civilians in Gaza constituted a staggering 61 percent of the total death toll in the first three weeks of Israel’s assault on the Palestinian enclave, a study published on Saturday by the Israeli newspaper Haaretz found. The Israeli military’s operation in Gaza, which began on Oct. 7 following a Hamas attack, killed more than 9,000 people, including at least 3,600 children, in the first three weeks alone. As the offensive expands into southern Gaza, where civilians were previously ordered by the Israeli Defense Forces to relocate, the death toll has passed 21,731, including more than 8,697 children, according to Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor. The Haaretz analysis found that in three of Israel’s previous assaults on Gaza between 2012 and 2022, about 40 percent of the total deaths were civilians. The newspaper’s findings confirm an investigation conducted 10 days ago by two other Israeli news websites, +972 Magazine and Local Call, which concluded that Israel was deliberately targeting residential blocks. These studies come as the US administration faces global criticism, as well as allegations of supporting war crimes, for vetoing a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire in the Gaza Strip. Louis Charbonneau, UN director at Human Rights Watch, said that the US “risks complicity in war crimes” by continuing to provide Israel with weapons and diplomatic cover.