THE Norway believes that the Israel may have violated international law with its bombing of Gaza that leveled entire neighborhoods and claimed the lives of thousands of Palestinians, Norway’s foreign minister said today.

Foreign Minister Espen Barth Ide said in an interview with Reuters that while Oslo supports Israel’s right to self-defense, humanitarian law must be respected.

That means separating combatants from civilians and ensuring that military attacks are proportionate to avoid excessive damage to civilians and civilian infrastructure, he said.

“We believe that there have been cases where this proportionality and this separation have not been fully respected,” he said, speaking from the United Arab Emirates.

The Israeli embassy in Abu Dhabi had no immediate comment, but the country maintains that its forces are not targeting civilians.

More than 8,000 people have been killed in Israeli shelling, according to Palestinian health officials. Israel launched its offensive after Hamas raids in southern Israel on October 7, which authorities say killed 1,400.

Israeli officials have said the country will not stop its assault on Gaza until it destroys Hamas.

Norway acted as mediator in the 1992-1993 talks between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) that led to the Oslo Accords in 1993. Since then, it has headed the donor group that coordinates international aid to the Palestinian territories.

International calls for a temporary cessation of hostilities to allow more humanitarian aid to reach Palestinians in Gaza have been rejected by Israel.

“What we are seeing in Gaza is a terribly dramatic humanitarian situation,” Barth Ide said.

He described conditions there as “terrible” with people facing huge shortages of water, electricity, medical supplies after weeks of heavy shelling by Israel.

He said satellite images that showed entire areas bombed, thousands of people’s homes destroyed and health infrastructure attacked were “clearly problematic” in terms of respecting international humanitarian law.

“This is not only important from a legal point of view, it is also important because there will come a time when we will have to look for political solutions,” Barth Ide said.

“We need to get back to the core question of what to do about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.”

Around 200 Norwegian citizens are estimated to be trapped in Gaza and unable to leave due to the blockade.