ISRAEL’S removal of rubble from its demolition of Gaza risks removing war crime evidence, a United Nations rapporteur warned on Monday.

Francesca Albanese said those states and companies involved in the removal of the rubble “could incur international criminal responsibility” for destroying evidence of crimes committed during Israel’s genocidal war on the enclave.

Ms Albanese’s remarks come two years after the International Court of Justice ordered Israel to take effective measures to prevent the destruction of evidence relating to allegations under the Genocide Convention.

But the Israeli military carried out a huge operation in August to crush, mix and transport millions of tons of rubble from numerous sites in Gaza, including cemeteries and other known locations of human remains.

Last month a report by the Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor said the removal of debris from the Israeli attacks on Palestinians in Gaza could be an attempt to erase evidence of genocide.

Ms Albanese said: “It is unacceptable that the reconstruction of Gaza is conditioned upon the erasure of its past and the evidence required to secure justice for its victims.”

Palestinian authorities estimate that more than 8,000 people remain buried under the debris.

Israel has continued to block Palestinian access to heavy machinery and forensic supplies needed to recover bodies.