Activist group Architects Climate Action Network has released a statement demanding an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, deeming Israel‘s war in the region to be genocide.
The statement, which was published earlier this month, called for architects and built environment professionals to demand a ceasefire in Gaza, support Palestinian efforts to rebuild the region and “reject the instrumentalisation of design for political violence and settler-colonial agendas”.
“The Architects Climate Action Network International unequivocally condemns the ongoing genocide in Gaza by the Israeli government,” said the group.
“We are horrified by the relentless systematic targeting of civilians, the widespread destruction of homes and infrastructure, and the deliberate obstruction of humanitarian aid,” it continued. “These egregious acts represent a grave and escalating crime against humanity.”
Group backs South Africa’s genocide case against Israel
Architects Climate Action Network said it supports South Africa’s ongoing case against Israel at the International Court of Justice, which alleges that genocide has been committed by Israel against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.
“These processes represent a crucial step towards justice and accountability for those responsible for war crimes and crimes against humanity,” Architects Climate Action Network said of the court case.
A number of organisations now consider Israel’s actions genocide, with the UN Special Committee releasing a report in November 2024 stating that Israel’s warfare in Gaza “is consistent with the characteristics of genocide”. An Amnesty International investigation in December 2024 also found that Israel is committing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza.
However, Israel has repeatedly denied that its war amounts to genocide.
Israel launched its military campaign on Gaza in response to attacks by Hamas on 7 October 2023, in which around 1,200 people were killed and 251 taken hostage. The BBC reported that Gaza’s health ministry puts the total death toll from Israel’s war on Gaza at 54,470.
“We acknowledge the tragic loss of civilian life on 7 October 2023 in Israel, but there is no justification for the scale and intensity of death and destruction currently being inflicted on civilian life and infrastructure in Gaza,” said Architects Climate Action Network.
At least 92 per cent of housing units and 69 per cent of all structures in Gaza have been destroyed or damaged, according to data shared by the United Nations.
“We have a moral and professional obligation to respond”
Architects Climate Action Network highlighted the carbon cost of the war in Gaza in its statement, arguing that architects have a duty to address this issue.
A recent study found that the carbon cost of the destruction in Gaza, along with clearing and rebuilding the region, could amount to 31 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (tCO2e), which is more than the combined 2023 annual greenhouse gases emitted by Costa Rica and Estonia.
“The destruction of buildings, infrastructure, and landscapes through war releases vast carbon emissions – burning materials, polluting ecosystems, and rupturing social-environmental balances,” said Architects Climate Action Network.
“The climate crisis, like the crisis in Gaza, is rooted in systems of injustice, exploitation, and racialised violence,” it continued. “As architects, we have a moral and professional obligation to respond.”
“Architecture must never be weaponised to legitimise ethnic cleansing”
Architects Climate Action Network’s statement also announced the group’s concerns over reported plans by Israel to redevelop war-torn Gaza and US president Donald Trump’s proposal to take over the region.
The group called for architects not to participate in any rebuilding efforts that disregard Palestinian rights and instead support Palestinian-led rebuilding efforts.
“As built environment professionals, we are particularly disturbed by efforts to frame the destruction of Gaza as a ‘real estate development opportunity’ by the Israeli government, and echoing statements by the US government, led by president Trump, advocating for the permanent displacement of Palestinians,” said Architects Climate Action Network.
“The use of architecture as a tool of colonisation, dispossession, and apartheid is not only unethical, it is a betrayal of our core values.”
“Architecture must never be weaponised to legitimise ethnic cleansing or occupation,” it added.
In other news, UK-based Architects for Gaza recently wrote an open letter to the Royal Institute of British Architects demanding an “expulsion of Israel” from the International Union of Architects. The Palestine Regeneration Team has also called for more architects to speak out against the war in Gaza, following its contribution to the British Pavilion at the Venice Architecture Biennale.
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