International Desk

The UN's human rights chief has said he is "horrified" by the destruction of Gaza's Nasser and al-Shifa hospitals amid the reports of "mass graves" with over 310 corpses being found at the sites after Israeli raids.

Volker Türk on Tuesday called for independent investigations into the deaths saying "Given the prevailing climate of impunity, this should include international investigators."

The European Union joined the discussion on Wednesday calling for an independent probe into the mass graves, according to AFP. In a bid to save their face, the US state department has also claimed the reports as "incredibly troubling".

Palestinian officials said they had exhumed 283 bodies at Nasser, some with their hands tied. It is not clear how they died or when they were buried. About 30 more bodies were found at al-Shifa, reports Reuters.

"Victims had reportedly been buried deep in the ground and covered with waste," UN Human Rights Office spokesperson Ravina Shamdasani told reporters in Geneva on Tuesday.

"Among the deceased were allegedly older people, women and wounded, while others... were found with their hands tied and stripped of their clothes."

Israel's military said claims that it buried bodies at Nasser were "baseless," according to BBC.

But it did say that during a two-week operation at the hospital in the city of Khan Younis in February, troops "examined" bodies buried by Palestinians "in places where intelligence indicated the possible presence of hostages".

Ten hostages who have now been released have said that they were held at Nasser hospital for long periods during their captivity, according to BBC.

Prior to the Israeli operation at Nasser, staff there had said they were being forced to bury bodies in the hospital's courtyard because nearby fighting prevented access to cemeteries. There were similar reports from al-Shifa before the first Israeli raid on the hospital took place in November.

The Israeli military has said it has raided a number of hospitals in Gaza during the war because Hamas fighters have been operating inside them – a claim Hamas and medical officials have denied.

BBC Arabic's Gaza Today programme staff spoke to a Palestinian man who said he was searching there for the bodies of two male relatives which he alleged had been taken by Israeli troops during Israel's recently concluded offensive in Khan Younis.

"After I had buried them in an apartment, the [Israelis] came and moved their bodies," he said. "Every day we search for their bodies, but we fail to find them."

The war began when Hamas gunmen carried out an unprecedented cross-border attack on southern Israel on 7 October, killing about 1,200 people – mostly civilians – and taking 253 others back to Gaza as hostages.

More than 34,180 people – most of them children and women – have been killed by Israeli forces in Gaza since then, the territory's Hamas-run health ministry says.

On 1 April, Israeli troops withdrew from al-Shifa hospital, which is in Gaza City, following what the IDF said was another "precise" operation carried out in response to intelligence that Hamas had regrouped there.

After a mission gained access to

The UN's human rights chief has said he is "horrified" by the destruction of Gaza's Nasser and al-Shifa hospitals and the reports of "mass graves" with over 310 corpses being found at the sites after Israeli raids.

Volker Türk on Tuesday called for independent investigations into the deaths saying "Given the prevailing climate of impunity, this should include international investigators."

The European Union joined the discussion on Wednesday calling for an independent probe into the mass graves, according to AFP. In a bid to save their face, the US state department has also claimed the reports as "incredibly troubling".

Palestinian officials said they had exhumed 283 bodies at Nasser, some with their hands tied. It is not clear how they died or when they were buried. About 30 more bodies were found at al-Shifa, reports Reuters.

"Victims had reportedly been buried deep in the ground and covered with waste," UN Human Rights Office spokesperson Ravina Shamdasani told reporters in Geneva on Tuesday.

"Among the deceased were allegedly older people, women and wounded, while others... were found with their hands tied and stripped of their clothes."

Israel's military said claims that it buried bodies at Nasser were "baseless," according to BBC.

But it did say that during a two-week operation at the hospital in the city of Khan Younis in February, troops "examined" bodies buried by Palestinians "in places where intelligence indicated the possible presence of hostages".

Ten hostages who have now been released have said that they were held at Nasser hospital for long periods during their captivity, according to BBC.

Prior to the Israeli operation at Nasser, staff there had said they were being forced to bury bodies in the hospital's courtyard because nearby fighting prevented access to cemeteries. There were similar reports from al-Shifa before the first Israeli raid on the hospital took place in November.

The Israeli military has said it has raided a number of hospitals in Gaza during the war because Hamas fighters have been operating inside them – a claim Hamas and medical officials have denied.

BBC Arabic's Gaza Today programme staff spoke to a Palestinian man who said he was searching there for the bodies of two male relatives which he alleged had been taken by Israeli troops during Israel's recently concluded offensive in Khan Younis.

"After I had buried them in an apartment, the [Israelis] came and moved their bodies," he said. "Every day we search for their bodies, but we fail to find them."

The war began when Hamas gunmen carried out an unprecedented cross-border attack on southern Israel on 7 October, killing about 1,200 people – mostly civilians – and taking 253 others back to Gaza as hostages.

More than 34,180 people – most of them children and women – have been killed by Israeli forces in Gaza since then, the territory's Hamas-run health ministry says.

On 1 April, Israeli troops withdrew from al-Shifa hospital, which is in Gaza City, following what the IDF said was another "precise" operation carried out in response to intelligence that Hamas had regrouped there.

After a mission gained access to the facility five days later, the World Health Organization (WHO) said al-Shifa was "now an empty shell", with most of the buildings extensively damaged or destroyed, and the majority of equipment unusable or reduced to ashes.

It also said that "numerous shallow graves" had been dug just outside the emergency department, and the administrative and surgical buildings, and that "many dead bodies were partially buried with their limbs visible".

The IDF had said at the time that 200 "terrorists" were killed in and around the hospital during the two-week raid. But the UN Human Rights Office later said "many more" people could have been killed during the Israeli raid.

the facility five days later, the World Health Organization (WHO) said al-Shifa was "now an empty shell", with most of the buildings extensively damaged or destroyed, and the majority of equipment unusable or reduced to ashes.

It also said that "numerous shallow graves" had been dug just outside the emergency department, and the administrative and surgical buildings, and that "many dead bodies were partially buried with their limbs visible".

The IDF had said at the time that 200 "terrorists" were killed in and around the hospital during the two-week raid. But the UN Human Rights Office later said "many more" people could have been killed during the Israeli raid.