Israeli war crimes
Israeli war crimes are the violations of international criminal law, including war crimes, crimes against humanity and the crime of genocide, which the Israel Defense Forces, the military branch of the state of Israel, has been accused of committing since the founding of Israel in 1948. These have included murder, intentional targeting of civilians, killing prisoners of war and surrendered combatants, indiscriminate attacks, collective punishment, starvation, the use of human shields, sexual violence and rape, torture, pillage, forced transfer, breach of medical neutrality, targeting journalists, attacking civilian and protected objects, wanton destruction, incitement to genocide, and genocide.
Israel ratified the Geneva Conventions on July 6, 1951,[1] and on January 2, 2015, the State of Palestine acceded to the Rome Statute, granting the International Criminal Court (ICC) jurisdiction over war crimes committed in the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT).[2] Human rights experts argue that actions taken by the IDF during armed conflicts in the OPT fall under the rubric of war crimes.[3] Special rapporteurs from the United Nations, organizations including Human Rights Watch, Médecins Sans Frontières, Amnesty International, and human rights experts have accused Israel of war crimes.[4][5][6][7][8]
Since 2006 the Human Rights Council has mandated several fact finding missions into violations of international law, including war crimes, in the OPT, and in May of 2021 established a permanent, ongoing inquiry.[9][10] Since 2021, the ICC has had an active investigation into Israeli war crimes committed in the OPT.[11][12] Israel has refused to cooperate with the investigations.[13][14]
In December 2023 South Africa invoked the 1948 Genocide Convention and charged Israel with war crimes and acts of genocide allegedly committed in the occupied Palestinian Territories and Gaza Strip.[15][16][17] The case, referred to as South Africa v. Israel, was set to be heard at the International Court of Justice (ICJ),[18][19] and South Africa presented its case to the court on 10 January.[20] In March 2024, the UN special rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the OPT found there were "reasonable grounds to believe that the threshold indicating the commission" of acts of genocide had been met.[21]
1948 Arab–Israeli War
Between 10 and 70 massacres occurred during the 1948 war.[22][23] According to Benny Morris the Yishuv (or later Israeli) soldiers killed roughly 800 Arab civilians and prisoners of war in 24 massacres.[22] Aryeh Yizthaki lists 10 major massacres with more than 50 victims each.[24] Palestinian researcher Salman Abu-Sitta lists 33 massacres, half of them occurring during the civil war period.[24] Saleh Abdel Jawad lists 68 villages in which the indiscriminate killing of prisoners and civilians took place while no threat was posed to Yishuv or Israeli soldiers.[23]
According to Rosemarie Esber, both Israeli archives and Palestinian testimonies confirm killings occurred in numerous Arab villages.[24] Most of these killings occurred as villages were overrun and captured during the Second phase of the Civil War, Operation Dani, Operation Hiram and Operation Yoav.[22][25] Morris said that the "worst cases" were the Saliha massacre with 60 to 70 killed, the Deir Yassin massacre with around 112, the Lydda massacre with around 250, and the Abu Shusha massacre with 60–70.[26] In Al-Dawayima, accounts of the death toll vary. Saleh Abd al-Jawad reports 100–200 casualties,[23] Morris has estimated "hundreds"[26] and also reports the IDF investigation which concluded 100 villagers had been killed.[27] David Ben-Gurion gave the figure of 70–80.[28][full citation needed] Saleh Abd al-Jawad reports on the village's mukhtar account[29] that 455 people were missing following the al-Dawayima massacre, including 170 women and children.[23]
Suez Crisis
During the Suez Crisis in 1956, the IDF carried out massacres and summary executions at Khan Yunis and Rafah,[30][31][32] and the Israeli Border Police carried out a massacre at Kafr Qasim.[33][34]
Six-Day War
During the Six Day War in 1967, the IDF was accused of killing captured Egyptian soldiers, fleeing soldiers, and civilians.[35] Gabby Bron, a journalist for Yedioth Ahronoth, said he witnessed ten executions of Egyptian prisoners that were first forced to dig their own graves.[36] Michael Bar-Zohar said that he had witnessed the murder of three Egyptian POWs by a cook,[37] and Meir Pa'il said that he knew of many instances in which soldiers had killed POWs or Arab civilians.[38] Israeli historian Uri Milstein stated there were many incidents in the 1967 war in which Egyptian soldiers were killed by Israeli troops after they had raised their hands in surrender.[39] "It was not an official policy, but there was an atmosphere that it was okay to do it," Milstein said. "Some commanders decided to do it; others refused. But everyone knew about it."[40] Allegations that Egyptian soldiers fleeing into the desert were shot were confirmed in reports written after the war. Israeli historian and journalist Tom Segev, in his book "1967", quotes one soldier who wrote, "our soldiers were sent to scout out groups of men fleeing and shoot them. That was the order, and it was done while they were really trying to escape".[41]
In September 1995 The New York Times reported that the Egyptian government had discovered two shallow mass graves in the Sinai at El Arish containing the remains of 30 to 60 Egyptian civilian and military prisoners allegedly shot by Israeli soldiers during the 1967 war. Israel declined to pursue charges, owing to its 20-year statute of limitations. The Israeli Ambassador to Cairo, David Sultan, asked to be relieved of his post after the Egyptian daily Al Shaab said he was personally responsible for the killing of 100 Egyptian prisoners, although both the Israeli Embassy and Foreign Ministry denied the charge. After his retirement, Brigadier-General in reserve, Arieh Biroh admitted in interviews to killing 49 Egyptian prisoners of war in the Sinai.[42] In June 2000, Egypt's Al-Wafd newspaper reported that a mass grave was discovered in Ras Sedr, containing remains of 52 prisoners killed by Israeli paratroopers during the war, who had killed the surrendered unit. The report said that some skulls had bullet holes in them, indicating execution.[43][44] Initial reports in Israeli newspaper Haaretz were censored.[45] The New York Times reported that as many as 300 unarmed Egyptians were killed in the 1967 and 1956 wars.[42] Israeli military historian Aryeh Yitzhaki estimated from army documents that, in the 1967 war, Israeli soldiers killed about 1,000 Egyptians after they surrendered.[46]
James Bamford, an author that has extensively chronicled the history and operations of the National Security Agency, posits that massacres of civilians and bound prisoners may have served as a casus belli for the Israeli attack on the USS Liberty. Bamford theorizes that the Israeli Defense Forces were concerned that the USS Liberty, a signals intelligence collection ship, may have collected evidence of the massacre and was thus attacked in an effort to suppress the evidence.[47][48][49][50][51][52]
1982 Lebanon War
In 1982 Israel invaded Lebanon to drive out the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), and the IDF occupied southern Lebanon. Following the siege of Beirut, the PLO forces and their allies negotiated passage from Lebanon with the aid of United States Special Envoy Philip Habib and the protection of international peacekeepers. By expelling the PLO, removing Syrian influence over Lebanon, and installing a pro-Israeli Christian government led by President Bachir Gemayel, Israel sought to sign a treaty which Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin promised would give Israel "forty years of peace".[53] However, after the assassination of Gemayel in September, Israel's position in Beirut became untenable and the signing of a peace treaty became increasingly unlikely. Outraged by the assassination, Phalangists called for a revenge attack.[54]
On September 16 the IDF allowed Lebanese militias to enter Beirut's Sabra neighbourhood and the adjacent Shatila refugee camp. From approximately 18:00 on 16 September to 08:00 on 18 September, the militias carried out a massacre while the IDF had the Palestinian camp surrounded.[56][57][58][59] The IDF had ordered the militias to clear out the fighters of the PLO from Sabra and Shatila as part of a larger Israeli maneuver into western Beirut. As the massacre unfolded, the IDF received reports of atrocities being committed, but did not take any action to stop it.[60] Israeli troops were stationed at the exits of the area to prevent the camp's residents from leaving and, at the request of the militias,[61] fired flares to illuminate Sabra and Shatila through the night.[62][63] Between 460 and 3,500 civilians—mostly Palestinians and Lebanese Shias—were killed in the massacre.[64][65] Many of the victims were tortured before they were killed. Women were raped and some victims were skinned alive. Others had limbs chopped off with axes.[66]
On 16 December 1982 the United Nations General Assembly condemned the massacre and declared it to be an act of genocide.[67][68][69][70] In February 1983, an independent commission chaired by Irish diplomat Seán MacBride (the then-assistant to the Secretary-General of the United Nations) launched an inquiry into the violence and concluded that the IDF, as the erstwhile occupying power over Sabra and Shatila, bore responsibility for the militia's massacre.[71] The commission also stated that the massacre was a form of genocide.[72] That same month, the Israeli government launched the Kahan Commission to investigate the cause and circumstances of the Sabra and Shatila massacre, and found that Israeli military personnel had failed to take serious steps to stop the killings despite being aware of the militia's actions. The Israeli commission deemed that the IDF was indirectly responsible for the events, and forced erstwhile Israeli defense minister Ariel Sharon to resign from his position "for ignoring the danger of bloodshed and revenge" during the massacre.[73]
First Intifada
On October 10, 1990, amid elevated tensions over the Sukkot march, a crowd of Palestinians began throwing rocks at Jewish worshippers at the Western Wall of the Temple Mount.[74] In response, 40 Israeli Border Police opened fire with automatic weapons on the Palestinian crowd, killing at least 21 and injuring at least 150. There were no Israeli deaths.[75] In a resolution on October 12, the UN condemned the violence committed by the Israeli forces, and proposed an investigation.[76][77] Israel rejected the resolution and refused to cooperate with an investigation. Failing to get agreement from Israel, the Secretary-General Javier Pérez de Cuéllar on October 31 published his report.[78][79] In the report, he stated:
The Secretary-General has thus been unable to secure independent information on the spot, about the circumstances surrounding the recent events in Jerusalem and similar developments in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. Widespread coverage has, however, been given by the international press to the clashes that occurred at Al-Haram Al-Shareef and other Holy Places of Jerusalem on 8 October 1990. According to reports, which vary, some 17 to 21 Palestinians were killed and more than 150 wounded by Israeli security forces, and more than 20 Israeli civilians and police were wounded by Palestinians. While there are conflicting opinions as to what provoked the clashes, observers on the spot, including personnel of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), stated that live ammunition was used against Palestinian civilians. Attention is drawn, in this connection, to the fact that a number of inquiries have been conducted. Apart from the [Israeli] Commission of Investigation referred to in paragraphs 3, 4 and 7 above, several Israeli and Palestinian human rights organizations have conducted inquiries of their own. The findings of two of them, B'Tselem and Al-Haq, were communicated to the Secretary-General, on 14 October[80] and 28 October 1990,[81] respectively, and are being issued separately as addenda to the present report.
Following the report, United Nations Security Council Resolution 681 on December 20, 1990, referring to Resolutions 672 and 673, called on Israel to apply the Fourth Geneva Convention to Palestinians in the occupied territories.[82] In their Annual 1990 World Report[83] Human Rights Watch condemned the Israeli report on the incident as "only mentioning in passing the 'uncontrolled use of live ammunition' by police, giving scant attention to what should have been a central issue: the use of excessive force, including shooting into a crowd with bursts of automatic-weapon fire."[83] Palestinians stated they only threw rocks after being attacked with tear gas and live weapons, in an effort to defend themselves and stop the soldiers.[84][85]
Second Intifada
Jenin and Nablus
Between 2 and 11 April 2002 a siege and fierce fighting took place in the Palestinian refugee camp of the city of Jenin. The camp was targeted during Operation Defensive Shield after Israel determined that it had "served as a launch site for numerous terrorist attacks against both Israeli civilians and Israeli towns and villages in the area."[86] The Jenin battle became a flashpoint for both sides, and saw fierce urban combat as Israeli infantry supported by armor and attack helicopters fought to clear the camp of Palestinian militants. The battle was eventually won by the IDF, after it employed a dozen Caterpillar D9 armored bulldozers to clear Palestinian booby traps, detonate explosive charges, and raze buildings and gun-posts; the bulldozers proved impervious to attacks by Palestinian militants.[87]
During Israeli military operations in the camp, Palestinian sources alleged that a massacre of hundreds of people had taken place. A senior Palestinian Authority official alleged in mid-April that some 500 had been killed.[88] During the fighting in Jenin, Israeli officials had also initially estimated hundreds of Palestinian deaths, but later said they expected the Palestinian toll to reach "45 to 55."[89] In the ensuing controversy, Israel blocked the United Nations from conducting the first-hand inquiry unanimously sought by the Security Council, but the UN nonetheless felt able to dismiss claims of a massacre in its report, which said there had been approximately 52 deaths, criticising both sides for placing Palestinian civilians at risk.[89][90]
At the same time human rights organizations charged Israel with war crimes and crimes against humanity.[91][92][93] In November, Amnesty International reported that there was "clear evidence" that the IDF committed war crimes against Palestinian civilians in Jenin and Nablus.[94] The report accused Israel of blocking medical care, using people as human shields, shooting and killing unarmed civilians, including one in custody, bulldozing houses with residents inside, in one case knowingly crushing a severely disabled man to death, in another case killing eight members of a family, the reckless killing of civilians with explosives charges on doors, mass arbitrary detentions and beatings of prisoners, which resulted in one death, and preventing ambulances and aid organizations from reaching the areas of combat even after the fighting had reportedly stopped.[95] Amnesty criticized the UN report, noting that its officials did not actually visit Jenin.[96]
The Observer reporter, Peter Beaumont, wrote that what happened in Jenin was not a massacre, but that the mass destruction of houses was a war crime, covered by Article 147 of the Fourth Geneva Convention in its prohibition on "the extensive destruction or unlawful appropriation of property, not justified by military necessity committed either unlawfully or wantonly."[97] Some reports noted that Israel's restriction of access to Jenin and refusal to allow the UN investigation access to the area were evidence of a coverup, a charge echoed by Mouin Rabbani, Director of the Palestinian American Research Center in Ramallah.[98]
2006 Lebanon War
In a 249-page report on the 2006 Lebanon War, the Human Rights Watch asked the secretary-general of the United Nations to establish an international commission of inquiry to investigate reports of violations of the laws of war by Israel, including possible war crimes.[99] In a report, Amnesty International also said that during the month-long conflict in Lebanon, Israel deliberately targeted civilian infrastructure and committed war crimes.[100]
2008–2009 Gaza War
Collective punishment
The United Nations Fact Finding Mission on the Gaza Conflict found that Israel, at least in part, targeted the people of Gaza as a whole. The Mission gave its opinion that ″the operations were in furtherance of an overall policy aimed at punishing the Gaza population for its resilience and for its apparent support for Hamas, and possibly with the intent of forcing a change in such support.″[101]
Disproportionate force
Israel was widely criticized by human rights groups for using heavy firepower and causing hundreds of civilian casualties.[102] A group of soldiers who took part in the conflict echoed the criticism through both the Israeli NGO Breaking the Silence and a special report by Israeli filmmaker Nurit Kedar that was shown on Britain's Channel 4 in January 2011.[103][104] Israel was accused of having a deliberate policy of disproportionate force aimed at the civilian population.[105] Israel has said that operational orders emphasized proportionality and humanity while the importance of minimising harm to civilians was made clear to soldiers. Some IDF soldiers, however, reported that they had been encouraged to shoot indiscriminately and disproportionately, and were ordered to "cleanse the neighbourhoods, the buildings, the area."[103]
IDF use of human shields
On 24 March 2009 a report from the UN team responsible for the protection of children in war zones was released: it found "hundreds" of violations of the rights of children and accused Israeli soldiers of using children as human shields, bulldozing a home with a woman and child still inside, and shelling a building they had ordered civilians into a day earlier.[106] One case involved using an 11-year-old boy as a human shield, by forcing him to enter suspected buildings first and also inspect bags. The report also mentioned the boy was used as a shield when Israeli soldiers came under fire.[106][107] The Guardian has also received testimony from three Palestinian brothers aged 14, 15, and 16, who all claimed to have been used as human shields.[108]
The UK newspaper The Guardian conducted an investigation of its own, which, according to the paper, uncovered evidence of war crimes including the use of Palestinian children as human shields.[109] An Israeli military court later convicted two Israeli soldiers of using human shields,[110] which was outlawed by the Israeli Supreme court in 2005.[109]
The UN fact-finding mission investigated four incidents in which Palestinian civilians were coerced, blindfolded, handcuffed and at gunpoint to enter houses ahead of Israeli soldiers during military operations. The mission confirmed the continued use of this practice with published testimonies of Israeli soldiers who had taken part in the military operations. The mission concluded that these practices amounted to using civilians as human shields in breach of international law. Some civilians were also questioned under threat of death or injury to extract information about Palestinian combatants and tunnels, constituting a further violation of international humanitarian law.[111]
White phosphorus
From 5 January reports emerged of use by Israel of white phosphorus during the offensive, which was initially denied by Israel.[112] There were numerous reports of its use by the IDF during the conflict. On 12 January, it was reported that more than 50 phosphorus burns victims were in Nasser Hospital. On 16 January the UNRWA headquarters was hit with phosphorus munitions.[113] As a result of the hit, the compound was set ablaze.[114] On completion of the three-day Israeli withdrawal (21 January) an Israeli military spokeswoman said that shells containing phosphorus had been used in Gaza but said that they were used legally as a method to provide a smokescreen.[113] The IDF reiterated their position on 13 January saying that it used weapons "in compliance with international law, while strictly observing that they be used according to the type of combat and its characteristics".[115] On 25 March 2009, the United States-based human rights organization Human Rights Watch published a 71-page report titled "Rain of Fire, Israel's Unlawful Use of White Phosphorus in Gaza" and said that Israel's usage of the weapon was illegal.[116] Donatella Rovera, Amnesty's researcher on Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories said that such extensive use of this weapon in Gaza's densely populated residential neighbourhoods is inherently indiscriminate. "Its repeated use in this manner, despite evidence of its indiscriminate effects and its toll on civilians, is a war crime," she said.[117] The Goldstone report accepted that white phosphorus is not illegal under international law but did find that the Israelis were "systematically reckless in determining its use in built-up areas". It also called for serious consideration to be given to the banning of its use as an obscurant.[118]
Videos by Al Jazeera of the 2008–2009 Gaza War
Colonel Lane, a military expert testifying in front of the fact-finding mission in July 2009, said that white phosphorus is used for smoke generation to hide from the enemy. He stated, "The quality of smoke produced by white phosphorus is superb; if you want real smoke for real coverage, white phosphorus will give it to you."[119]
Professor Newton, expert in laws of armed conflict testifying in front of the committee, said that in an urban area, where potential perils are snipers, explosive devices and trip wires, one effective way to mask forces' movement is by white phosphorus. In certain cases, he added, such choice of means would be less harmful for civilian population than other munitions, provided that the use of white phosphorus withstands the proportionality test. In discussing the principle of proportionality he said that the legality of using white phosphorus in an urban setting could only be decided on a case-by-case basis taking into account "the precise circumstances of its use, not in general, generically, but based on that target, at that time". He stressed that the humanitarian implications were vital in this assessment giving the example that using white phosphorus on a school yard would have different implications to its use on another area. He also said that in his view white phosphorus munition is neither chemical nor incendiary weapon and is not intended to cause damage. He said its use was not prohibited by the Chemical Weapons Convention.[119]
An article by Mark Cantora examining the legal implications of the use of white phosphorus munitions by the IDF, published in 2010 in the Gonzaga Journal of International Law, argues that Israel's use of white phosphorus in Gaza was technically legal under existing international humanitarian laws and "Therefore, it is imperative for the international community to convene a White Phosphorus Convention Conference in order to address these issues and fill this substantial gap in international humanitarian law."[120]
Dense inert metal explosives (DIME)
Dense inert metal explosive (DIME) is a type of bomb developed to minimize collateral damage.[121] Casualties show unusual injuries. A military expert working for Human Rights Watch said judging by the nature of the wounds and descriptions given by Gazans made it seem likely that Israel used DIME weapons. A Norwegian doctor who worked at Gaza's Shifa Hospital said that pressure waves generated by missile hits are likely the cause and produced by DIME weapons.[121] Another Norwegian doctor said they had ″clear evidence that the Israelis are using a new type of very high explosive weapons which are called Dense Inert Metal Explosive″.[122]
Colonel Lane, military expert testifying in front of the fact-finding mission in July 2009, told the committee that through his studies, no actual proof was found that DIME rounds were used, but tungsten, iron, and sulfur were found in samples analyzed in a forensic lab. He is of the view that some weapons systems used in the conflict had some sort of DIME component to reduce the effect on the ground. Colonel Lane explained that the idea behind a Focused Lethality Munition (FLM), which is an example of a DIME munition, is that the fragments produced stay within a safety radius of about 6 meters, so anybody outside that radius is safe, while those within the area of dispersal will be affected severely. He commented on the documentations where medics described unusual amputations saying that he was no medical expert, but the use of a metal like tungsten and cobalt at short distances would likely have that effect.[123]
The Goldstone Report wrote that the Mission found that the allegations that DIME weapons were used by Israeli armed forces required further clarification and they were unable to ascertain their usage, though it received reports from Palestinian and foreign doctors who had operated in Gaza during the military operations of a high percentage of patients with injuries compatible with their impact. It stated that the "focused lethality" reportedly pursued in DIME weapons could be seen as enhancing compliance with the principle of distinction between civilian and military objects. The report added that as it currently stands, DIME weapons and weapons armed with heavy metal are not prohibited under international law, but do raise specific health concerns.[118]
An Amnesty International report called on Israel to confirm or deny its use of DIME to facilitate the treatment of those injured in the conflict.[124] After reports of similar cases in 2006, the IDF had denied the use of DIME weapons.[125] After Israeli forces fired shells near a UN school in Gaza killing around 30 people, Israel's military said the shelling was in response to mortar fire from within the school and asserted that Hamas were using civilians as cover. They stated that the dead near the school included Hamas members of a rocket launching cell. Two residents of the area confirmed that a group of militants were firing mortar shells from near the school and identified two of the victims as Hamas militants.
Accusations of misconduct by IDF soldiers
Testimonies from Israeli soldiers allegedly admitting indiscriminate killings of civilians, as well as vandalizing homes, were reported in March 2009.[126][127][128] Soon after the publication of the testimonies, reports implying that the testimonies were based on hearsay and not on the firsthand experience started to circulate.[128] At the same time, another kind of evidence was collected from several soldiers who took part in the fighting, that rebutted claims of immoral conduct on the military's part during Gaza War.[129] Following investigations, the IDF issued an official report, concluding that alleged cases of deliberate shooting at civilians did not take place.[130] Nine Israeli rights groups reacting to the closure of the investigation issued a joint statement calling for an "independent nonpartisan investigative body to be established to look into all Israeli army activity" in Gaza.[130]
In July 2009 the Israeli NGO Breaking the Silence published testimony from 26 soldiers (two junior officers and the rest enlisted personnel) who took part in the Gaza assault, claiming that the IDF used Gazans as human shields, improperly fired incendiary white phosphorus shells over civilian areas and used overwhelming firepower that caused needless deaths and destruction.[131][132] The report did not represent a cross-section of the army, but rather they were troops who had approached the group or were reached through acquaintances of NGO members.[131] The accusations were made by anonymous people who claimed that they were reserves soldiers and whose faces had been blurred in the filmed talks. An Israeli military spokesperson dismissed the testimonies as anonymous hearsay and questioned why Breaking the Silence had not handed over its findings before the media had been informed. The Israeli military stated that some allegations of misconduct had turned out to be second or third-hand accounts and the result of recycled rumours.[133][134] Breaking the Silence state that their methodology includes the verification of all information by cross-referencing the testimonies it collects and that published material has been confirmed by a number of testimonies, from several different points of view. A representative stated "the personal details of the soldiers quoted in the collection, and the exact location of the incidents described in the testimonies, would readily be made available to any official and independent investigation of the events, as long as the identity of the testifiers did not become public."[135] A soldier who described using Gazans as human shields told in an interview to Haaretz that he had not seen Palestinians being used as human shields but had been told by his commanders that this occurred.[136]
In response to the report, a dozen English-speaking reservists who served in Gaza delivered signed, on-camera counter-testimonies via the SoldiersSpeakOut group, about Hamas' "use of Gazans as human shields and the measures the IDF took to protect Arab civilians".[137][138] The special report by Israeli filmmaker Nurit Kedar shown on Channel 4 detailed similar allegations by former IDF soldiers that included vandalism and misconduct by Israeli troops.[103]
Colonel Richard Kemp, former commander of British forces in Afghanistan, in his address to the UNHRC asserted that during the conflict, the Israel Defense Forces "did more to safeguard the rights of civilians in a combat zone than any other army in the history of warfare" and that Palestinian civilian casualties were a consequence of Hamas' way of fighting, which involved using human shields as a matter of policy, and deliberate attempts to sacrifice their own civilians. He added that Israel took extraordinary measures to give Gaza civilians notice of targeted areas and aborted potentially effective missions to prevent civilian casualties.[139]
Prosecutions
The first Israeli soldier to be prosecuted for actions committed during the war was a Givati Brigade soldier who stole a Visa credit card from a Palestinian home and used it to withdraw NIS 1,600 ($405). He was arrested and tried before the Southern Command Military Court on charges of looting, credit card fraud, and indecent conduct. He was found guilty and sentenced to seven and a half months in military prison.[140]
In a report submitted to the UN in January 2010, the IDF stated that two senior officers were disciplined for authorizing an artillery attack in violation of rules against their near populated areas. Several artillery shells hit the UNRWA compound in Tel al-Hawa.[141][142] During the attack on 15 January 2009, the compound was set ablaze by white phosphorus shells.[118] The officers involved were identified as Gaza Division Commander Brigadier-General Eyal Eisenberg and Givati Brigade Commander Colonel Ilan Malka.[114] An IDF internal investigation concluded that the firing of the shells violated the IDF orders limiting the use of artillery fire near populated areas and endangered human life.[142] IDF sources added later that the shells had been fired to create cover to assist in the extrication of IDF troops, some of whom were wounded, from an area where Hamas held a superior position.[141] An Israeli Government spokesman stated that in this particular case they had found no evidence of criminal wrongdoing and so had not referred the case to criminal investigation.[114]
In October 2010 Colonel Ilan Malka was interrogated by Israeli military police over the Zeitoun killings, and a criminal investigation was opened. Malka was suspected of authorizing an airstrike on a building that left numerous members of the Samouni family dead. His promotion to the rank of Brigadier-General was suspended due to the investigation. Malka told investigatiors that he was unaware of the presence of civilians.[143][144] He was eventually reprimanded over the incident, but it was decided not to indict him. No other charges were brought over this incident. The IDF denied that they were targeting civilians and The New York Times reported that Hamas members had launched rockets at Israel about a mile away from the residents, an area "known to have many supporters of Hamas".[145] The Palestinian Center for Human Rights called the result "disgraceful" and Btselem stated the need for an external investigator to look into IDF actions during Cast Lead.[146]
In June 2010 Chief Advocate General Avichai Mandelblit summoned a recently discharged Givati Brigade sniper for a special hearing. The soldier was suspected of opening fire on Palestinian civilians when a group of 30 Palestinians that included women and children waving a white flag, approached an IDF position. The incident, which occurred on 4 January 2009, resulted in the death of a non-combatant. Mandelblit decided to indict the soldier on a charge of manslaughter, despite contradictory testimony and the fact that IDF investigators could not confirm that the soldier was responsible for the death.[147]
In July 2010, the officer who authorized the airstrike on the Ibrahim al-Maqadna Mosque was subjected to disciplinary action, as shrapnel caused "unintentional injuries" to civilians inside. The IDF said that the officer "failed to exercise appropriate judgement", and that he would not be allowed to serve in similar positions of command in the future. Another Israeli officer was also reprimanded for allowing a Palestinian man to enter a building to persuade Hamas militants sheltering inside to leave.[148]
In November 2010 two Givati Brigade Staff Sergeants were convicted by the Southern Command Military Court of using a Palestinian boy as a human shield. The soldiers had been accused of forcing nine-year-old Majed R. at gunpoint to open bags suspected of containing bombs in the Tel al-Hawa neighborhood. Both soldiers were demoted one rank and given three-month suspended sentences.[1]
According to the U.S. State Department's 2010 Human Rights Report, the Military Advocate General investigated over 150 wartime incidents, including those mentioned in the Goldstone Report. As of July, the Military Advocate General launched 47 criminal investigations into the conduct of IDF personnel, and completed a significant number of those.[149]
On 1 April 2011 Judge Richard Goldstone, the lead author of the UN report on the conflict, published a piece in The Washington Post titled 'Reconsidering the Goldstone Report on Israel and war crimes'. Goldstone noted that the subsequent investigations conducted by Israel "indicate that civilians were not intentionally targeted as a matter of policy" while "the crimes allegedly committed by Hamas were intentional goes without saying." He further expressed regret "that our fact-finding mission did not have such evidence explaining the circumstances in which we said civilians in Gaza were targeted, because it probably would have influenced our findings about intentionality and war crimes."[150] The other principal authors of the UN report, Hina Jilani, Christine Chinkin and Desmond Travers, have rejected Goldstone's reassessment arguing that there is "no justification for any demand or expectation for reconsideration of the report as nothing of substance has appeared that would in any way change the context, findings or conclusions of that report with respect to any of the parties to the Gaza conflict".[151][152] Robert Fisk reported that Goldstone had been pressured by Israel and members of his family to recant his original report, was harassed by the Jewish community of South Africa, and "was in a state of great personal distress."[153]
2014 Gaza War
Israel received some 500 complaints concerning 360 alleged violations. 80 were closed without criminal charges, 6 cases were opened on incidents allegedly involving criminal conduct, and in one case regarding 3 IDF soldiers in the aftermath of the Battle of Shuja'iyya, a charge of looting was laid. Most cases were closed for what the military magistrates considered to be lack of evidence to sustain a charge of misconduct. No mention was made of incidents during the "Black Friday" events at Rafah.[154][155]
According to Assaf Sharon of Tel Aviv University, the IDF was pressured by politicians to unleash unnecessary violence whose basic purpose was 'to satisfy a need for vengeance,' which the politicians themselves tried to whip up in Israel's population.[156] Asa Kasher wrote that the IDF was pulled into fighting "that is both strategically and morally asymmetric" and that like any other army it made mistakes, but the charges it faces are "grossly unfair".[157] The Israeli NGO Breaking the Silence, reporting on its analysis of 111 testimonies concerning the war by some 70 IDF soldiers and officers,[158][159] cited one veteran's remark that "Anyone found in an IDF area, which the IDF had occupied, was not a civilian," to argue that this was the basic rule of engagement. Soldiers were briefed to regard everything inside the Strip as a threat. The report cites several examples of civilians, including women, being shot dead and defined as "terrorists" in later reports.[160][161] Since leaflets were dropped telling civilians to leave areas to be bombed, soldiers could assume any movement in a bombed area entitled them to shoot.[158] In one case that came under investigation, Lt Col Neria Yeshurun ordered a Palestinian medical centre to be shelled to avenge the killing of one of his officers by a sniper.[162]
Civilian deaths
Many of those killed were civilians, prompting concern from many humanitarian organisations. An investigation by Human Rights Watch concluded that Israel had probably committed war crimes on three specific incidents involving strikes on UNWRA schools.[163] Amnesty International stated that: "Israeli forces have carried out attacks that have killed hundreds of civilians, including through the use of precision weaponry such as drone-fired missiles, and attacks using munitions such as artillery, which cannot be precisely targeted, on very densely populated residential areas, such as Shuja'iyya. They have also directly attacked civilian objects."[164] B'tselem has compiled an infogram listing families killed at home in 72 incidents of bombing or shelling, comprising 547 people killed, of whom 125 were women under 60, 250 were minors, and 29 were over 60.[165] On 24 August, Palestinian health officials said that 89 families had been killed.[166]
Nine people were killed while watching the World Cup in a café,[167] and 8 members of a family died that Israel has said were inadvertently killed.[168] A Golani soldier interviewed about his operations inside Gaza said they often could not distinguish between civilians and Hamas fighters because some Hamas operatives dressed in plainclothes and the night vision goggles made everything look green. An IDF spokesperson said that Hamas "deploys in residential areas, creating rocket launch sites, command and control centers, and other positions deep in the heart of urban areas. By doing so, Hamas chooses the battleground where the IDF is forced to operate."[169] The highest-ranking U.S. military officer, Army General Martin Dempsey, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said that "Israel went to extraordinary lengths to limit collateral damage and civilian casualties". Later in his speech he said, "the Pentagon three months ago sent a 'lessons-learned team' of senior officers and non-commissioned officers to work with the IDF to see what could be learned from the Gaza operation, to include the measures they took to prevent civilian casualties and what they did with tunneling."[170] Col. Richard Kemp told The Observer, "IDF has taken greater steps than any other army in the history of warfare to minimise harm to civilians in a combat zone"[171]
Warnings prior to attacks
In many cases the IDF warned civilians prior to targeting militants in highly populated areas to comply with international law.[172][173][174][175] Human rights organizations including Amnesty International,[176][177] confirmed that in many cases, Palestinians received warnings prior to evacuation, including flyers, phone calls and roof knocking. A report by Jaffa based NGO Physicians for Human Rights, released in January 2015, said that Israel's alert system had failed, and that the roof-knock system was ineffective.[178] The IDF was criticized for not giving civilians enough time to evacuate.[179] In one case, the warning came less than one minute before the bombing.[180] Hamas has told civilians to return to their homes or stay put following Israeli warnings to leave.[181] In many cases, Palestinians evacuated; in others, they have stayed in their homes. Israel condemned Hamas's encouragement of Palestinians to remain in their homes despite warnings in advance of airstrikes.[182] Hamas stated that the warnings were a form of psychological warfare and that people would be equally or more unsafe in the rest of Gaza.[182][183]
Amnesty International said that "although the Israeli authorities claim to be warning civilians in Gaza, a consistent pattern has emerged that their actions do not constitute an "effective warning" under international humanitarian law."[164] Human Rights Watch concurred.[184] Many Gazans, when asked, told journalists that they remained in their houses simply because they had nowhere else to go.[183] OCHA's spokesman has said "there is literally no safe place for civilians" in Gaza.[185] Roof knocking has been condemned as unlawful by Amnesty International[177] and Human Rights Watch[172] as well as the United Nations Fact Finding Mission in the 2008 war.
Destruction of homes
Israel targeted many homes in this conflict. UNWRA official Robert Turner estimated that 7,000 homes were demolished and 89,000 were damaged, some 10,000 of them severely.[186] This has led to many members of the same family being killed. B'Tselem documented 59 incidents of bombing and shelling, in which 458 people were killed.[165] In some cases, Israel has stated that these homes were of suspected militants and were used for military purposes. The New York Times noted that the damage in this operation was higher than in the previous two wars and stated that 60,000 people had been left homeless as a result.[187] The destruction of homes has been condemned by B'Tselem,[188] Human Rights Watch[189][190] and Amnesty International[176] as unlawful, amounting to collective punishment and war crimes.
Israel destroyed the homes of two suspects in the case of the abduction and killing of the three teenagers. The house demolition has been condemned by B'Tselem as unlawful.[191][non-primary source needed]
Palestinians returning to their homes during the ceasefire reported that IDF soldiers had trashed their homes, destroyed home electronics such as TV sets, spread feces in their homes, and carved slogans such as "Burn Gaza down" and "Good Arab = dead Arab" in walls and furniture. The IDF did not respond to a request by The Guardian for comment.[192]
On 5 November 2014 Amnesty International published a report examining eight cases where the IDF targeted homes, resulting in the deaths of 111 people, of whom 104 were civilians. Barred from access to Gaza by Israel since 2012, it conducted its research remotely, supported by two contracted Gaza-based fieldworkers who conducted multiple visits of each site to interview survivors, and consulted with military experts to evaluate photographic and video material. It concludes, in every case, that "there was a failure to take necessary precautions to avoid excessive harm to civilians and civilian property, as required by international humanitarian law" and "no prior warning was given to the civilian residents to allow them to escape." As Israel did not disclose any information regarding the incidents, the report said it was not possible for Amnesty International to be certain of what Israel was targeting; it also said that if there were no valid military objectives, international humanitarian law may have been violated, as attacks directed at civilians and civilian objects, or attacks which are otherwise disproportionate relative to the anticipated military advantage of carrying them out, constitute war crimes.[193][194]
The report was dismissed by the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs as "narrow", "decontextualized", and disattentive of alleged war crimes perpetrated by Hamas. Amnesty, it asserted, was serving as "a propaganda tool for Hamas and other terror groups."[195][196] Anne Herzberg, legal adviser for NGO Monitor, questioned the accuracy of the UN numbers used in the report, saying that they "essentially come from Hamas."[197]
Shelling of UNRWA schools
There were seven shellings at UNRWA facilities in the Gaza Strip which took place between 21 July and 3 August 2014. The incidents were the result of artillery, mortar or aerial missile fire which struck on or near the UNRWA facilities being used as shelters for Palestinians, and as a result at least 44 civilians, including 10 UN staff, died. During the 2014 Israel-Gaza conflict, many Palestinians fled their homes after warnings by Israel or due to air strikes or fighting in the area. An estimated 290,000 people (15% of Gaza's population) took shelter in UNRWA schools.
On three separate occasions, on 16 July,[198] 22 July[199] and on 29 July, UNRWA announced that rockets had been found in their schools.[200] UNRWA denounced the groups responsible for "flagrant violations of the neutrality of its premises". All of these schools were vacant at the time when rockets were discovered; no rockets were found in any shelters which were shelled. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) stated that "Hamas chooses where these battles are conducted and, despite Israel's best efforts to prevent civilian casualties, Hamas is ultimately responsible for the tragic loss of civilian life. Specifically in the case of UN facilities, it is important to note the repeated abuse of UN facilities by Hamas, namely with at least three cases of munitions storage within such facilities."[201]
The attacks were condemned by members of the UN (UNRWA's parent organization) and other governments, such as the U.S., have expressed "extreme concern" over the safety of Palestinian civilians who "are not safe in UN-designated shelters."[201] The Rafah shelling in particular was widely criticized, with Ban Ki-moon calling it a "moral outrage and a criminal act" and US State Department calling it "appalling" and "disgraceful". UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay said that both Hamas militants and Israel might have committed war crimes. A Human Rights Watch investigation into three of the incidents concluded that Israel committed war crimes because two of the shellings "did not appear to target a military objective or were otherwise indiscriminate", while the third Rafah shelling was "unlawfully disproportionate".[202] On 27 April 2015, the United Nations released an inquiry which concluded that Israel was responsible for the deaths of at least 44 Palestinians who died in the shelling and 227 were injured.[203]
Infrastructure
On 23 July 12 human rights organizations in Israel released a letter to Israeli government warning that "Gaza Strip's civilian infrastructure is collapsing".[204][205] They wrote that "due to Israel's ongoing control over significant aspects of life in Gaza, Israel has a legal obligation to ensure that the humanitarian needs of the people of Gaza are met and that they have access to adequate supplies of water and electricity." They note that many water and electricity systems were damaged during the conflict, which has led to a "pending humanitarian and environmental catastrophe". The Sydney Morning Herald reported that "almost every piece of critical infrastructure, from electricity to water to sewage, has been seriously compromised by either direct hits from Israeli air strikes and shelling or collateral damage."[206]
Between five and eight of the 10 power lines that bring electricity from Israel were disabled, at least three by Hamas rocket fire.[207][208][209] On 29 July, Israel was reported to bomb Gaza's only power plant,[210] which was estimated to take a year to repair. Amnesty International said the crippling of the power station amounted to "collective punishment of Palestinians".[211][212] Human Rights Watch has stated that "[d]amaging or destroying a power plant, even if it also served a military purpose, would be an unlawful disproportionate attack under the laws of war".[213] Israel immediately denied damaging the power plant, stating there was "no indication that [IDF] were involved in the strike ... The area surrounding the plant was also not struck in recent days."[214] Contradicting initial reports that it would take a year to repair, the power plant resumed operation on 27 October.[215][216]
Attacks on journalists
17 journalists were killed in the conflict,[217][218] of which five were off-duty and two (from Associated Press) were covering a bomb disposal team's efforts to defuse an unexploded Israeli artillery shell when it exploded.[219][220] In several cases, the journalists were killed while having markings distinguishing them as press on their vehicles or clothing.[221][222] IDF stated that in one case it had precise information that a vehicle marked "TV" that was hit killing one alleged journalist was in military use.[223][224] Several media outlets, including the offices of Al-Jazeera, were hit. The International Federation of Journalists has condemned the attacks as "appalling murders and attacks".[225] Journalists are considered civilians and should not be targeted under international humanitarian law.[226] The Israeli army said it does not target journalists, and that it contacts news media "in order to advise them which areas to avoid during the conflict".[220] Israel has made foreign journalists sign a waiver stating that it is not responsible for their safety in Gaza, which Reporters Without Borders calls contrary to international law.[227][228][229] The Director-General of UNESCO, Irina Bokova, who in August 2014 condemned the killing of Al Aqsa TV journalist Abdullah Murtaja, withdrew her comments after it was revealed that Murtaja was also a combatant in Hamas's Al Qassam Brigade, and said she "deplore[d] attempts to instrumentalize the profession of journalists by combatants"[230][231]
ITIC published a report analyzing a list of 17 names published by Wafa News Agency based on information originating from Hamas-controlled Gaza office of the ministry of information that supposedly belong to journalists killed in the operation. The report says that 8 of the names belong to Hamas or Islamic Jihad operatives, or employees of the Hamas media.[218][232]
Israel bombed Hamas's Al-Aqsa radio and TV stations because of their "propaganda dissemination capabilities used to broadcast the messages of (Hamas's) military wing."[233] Reporters Without Borders and Al-Haq condemned the attacks, saying "an expert committee formed by the International Criminal Court's prosecutor for the former Yugoslavia, to assess the NATO bombing campaign of 1999, specified that a journalist or media organization is not a legitimate target merely because it broadcasts or disseminates propaganda."[226][234] The U.S. government classifies Al-Aqsa TV as being controlled by Hamas, a "Specially Designated Global Terrorist," and states that it "will not distinguish between a business financed and controlled by a terrorist group, such as Al-Aqsa Television, and the terrorist group itself."[235][236][237][original research?]
Human shields
The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay accused Israel of having "defied international law by attacking civilian areas of Gaza such as schools, hospitals, homes and U.N. facilities. "None of this appears to me to be accidental," Pillay said. "They appear to be defying – deliberate defiance of – obligations that international law imposes on Israel.""[238] The Jaffa based NGO Physicians for Human Rights stated in a report in January 2015 that the IDF had used human shields during the war. IDF criticized the report's conclusions and methodology which "cast a heavy shadow over its content and credibility".[239] Defense for Children International-Palestine reported that 17-year-old Ahmad Abu Raida was kidnapped by Israeli soldiers who, after beating him up, used him as a human shield for five days, forcing him to walk in front of them with police dogs at gunpoint, search houses and dig in places soldiers suspected there might be tunnels.[240][241] Several of the key claims could not be verified because his Hamas-employed father said he forgot to take photographs of the alleged abuse marks and discarded all the clothing IDF soldiers supposedly provided Abu Raida when he was freed.[242]
The IDF confirmed that the troops suspected Ahmad of being a militant based on the affiliation of his father (a senior official in Gaza's Tourism Ministry) with Hamas and so detained him during the ground operation. The IDF and Israeli authorities challenged the credibility of DCI-P noting their "scant regard for truth".[242] The IDF Military Advocate General opened criminal investigation into the event.[223]
2018–2019 Gaza border protests
In late February 2019 a United Nations Human Rights Council's independent commission found that of the 489 cases of Palestinian deaths or injuries analyzed, only two were possibly justified as responses to danger by Israeli security forces. On 18 March 2019, a three-person United Nations commission urged Israeli authorities to "step up" their investigations into Israeli troops shootings of Palestinian demonstrators during the protests. The U.N. investigators believe that the shootings "may have constituted war crimes and crimes against humanity."[243] The commission of inquiry presented the United Nations Human Rights Council a full 250-page report.[244]
2021 Israel–Palestine crisis
Human Rights Watch accused Israel of conducting three airstrikes against civilian targets on May 10, May 15, and May 16 and said there were no military targets in the vicinity at the time of the airstrike.[245] A total of 62 Palestinian civilians were killed in these three airstrikes. Israel disputed these allegations, but IDF Spokesperson Hidai Zilberman said that Israel's actions in Gaza are "as far from pinpoint accuracy as you can get. They’re making Gaza City shake." B'Tselem stated that Israel's bombing of residential high rises was a war crime, both because they were inhabited by civilians and because their destruction offered no military advantage, adding that "the message conveyed in the IDF Spokesperson’s statement is that no matter how Israel responds or how horrific the results – its actions will be legitimate. This stance is unreasonable, unlawful and empties the fundamental norms of international humanitarian law, which Israel is obligated to uphold, of meaning."[246] According to the OHCHR, 128 Palestinian civilians were killed by the IDF in the conflict, including 40 women and 63 children, with another 2000 injured, including 600 children and 400 women.[247]
In 2021 Amnesty International which documented 'four deadly attacks by Israel launched on residential homes without prior warning', asked the International Criminal Court to immediately investigate these attacks that may amount to war crimes or crimes against humanity.[248]
2023 Israel–Hamas war
Numerous allegations of war crimes were levied against Israel for its actions against civilians during its 2023 war with Hamas.[249][250][251][252] The UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory stated there was "already clear evidence" of war crimes and would share evidence with judicial authorities, including the International Criminal Court's authorities currently investigating war crimes committed in the Occupied Territories.[253]
As of 1 February 2024, more than 27,000 Palestinians had been killed by Israel since October 7th, up to two-thirds of whom were women and children.[254]
Critics argue the Biden administration of the United States gave tacit approval to Israeli war crimes.[255]
Collective punishment
Several actions taken by the Israeli army were characterized as collective punishment, a war crime prohibited by treaty in both international and non-international armed conflicts, more specifically Common Article 3 of the Geneva Conventions and Article 6 of Additional Protocol II.[256][257] Doctors Without Borders international president Christos Christou said millions of civilians in Gaza faced "collective punishment" due to Israel's blockade on fuel and medicine.[258][259] A group of United Nations special rapporteurs termed Israeli airstrikes on Gaza a form of collective punishment, stating the airstrikes are "absolutely prohibited under international law and amounts to a war crime."[260] In fact, Israel's president Isaac Herzog accused the residents of Gaza of collective responsibility for the war.[261][262] In response to accusations of collective punishment, Israel Katz, the Israeli Minister of Energy, wrote, "Indeed, Madam Congresswoman. We have to draw a line... They will not receive a drop of water or a single battery until they leave the world."[263]
Blockade
On October 9, 2023, Israel's defense minister, Yoav Gallant, announced a complete siege on Gaza, which involved cutting off essential supplies like electricity, food, water, and gas.[264] This tactic raised concerns about violations of the laws of war, since civilians were being denied basic necessities.[264] The United Nations warned that any siege endangering civilian lives by depriving them of essential goods was prohibited under international humanitarian law.[264][265]
Tom Dannenbaum, an expert on siege law at Tufts University, described Israel's outspoken policy of total blockade and deprivation as "an abnormally clear-cut instance of starving civilians as a means of war, an unambiguous violation of human rights".[255] The starvation of civilians, including through the denial of relief supplies, is a war crime.[266]
Water access
As part of Israel's blockade on Gaza, all access to water was shut off.[267] Article 51 of the Berlin Rules on Water Resources bars combatants from removing water or water infrastructure to cause death or to force its movement.[268] On October 14, the UNRWA announced Gaza no longer had clean drinking water, and two million people were at risk of death from dehydration.[269] On October 15, Israel agreed to resume water supply in southern Gaza; however, aid workers and a government spokesperson reported no water was available.[270][271][272] The EU's chief diplomat Josep Borrell described Israel's cutting off water as "not in accordance with international law."[273]
Effects on children
Children were disproportionately impacted by Israel's attack on Gaza.[274] On 13 November, UNICEF stated more than 700,000 children in Gaza were displaced.[275] The Palestine Red Crescent Society stated displaced children were suffering, due to power outages, lack of basic essentials, and "scenes of pain and fear."[276] Catherine M. Russell, the executive director of UNICEF, toured Gaza on 15 November, stating many children were buried under rubble and lacking medical care.[277] Dr. Ahmed al-Fara, the head of pediatrics at Nasser Medical Complex in Khan Younis, stated due to the lack of clean water, he was witnessing the "most serious epidemic of gastroenteritis" among children he had ever seen.[278] UNICEF spokesperson Toby Fricker stated, "There is no safe place for children anywhere across the strip right now."[279] Save the Children reported serious signs of mental health issues among children in Gaza.[280]
Forcible transfer
On October 13, 2023, the Israeli army ordered the evacuation of 1.1 million people from North Gaza.[281] The evacuation order was characterized as a forcible transfer by Jan Egeland, the Norwegian former diplomat involved with the Oslo Accords.[282] A "forcible transfer" is the forced relocation of a civilian population as part of an organized offense against it and is considered a crime against humanity by the International Criminal Court.[283] In an interview with the BBC, Egeland stated, "There are hundreds of thousands of people fleeing for their life — [that is] not something that should be called an evacuation. It is a forcible transfer of people from all of northern Gaza, which according to the Geneva convention is a war crime."[282] UN special rapporteur Francesca Albanese warned of a mass ethnic cleansing in Gaza.[284] Raz Segal, an Israeli historian and director of the Holocaust and Genocide Studies program at Stockton University, termed it a "textbook case of genocide."[285] According to Hamas' media office, Israeli airstrikes bombed and killed Gazans evacuating to the south.[286][287]
White phosphorus
On October 12, 2023, Human Rights Watch said the Israeli army had used white phosphorus munitions in Gaza. The IDF said this allegation was "unequivocally false".[288] White phosphorus burns upon contact, can cause deep and severe injuries, potentially leading to multiple organ failure, and even minor burns can be fatal. According to Human Rights Watch, the use of white phosphorus is "unlawfully indiscriminate when airburst in populated urban areas, where it can burn down houses and cause egregious harm to civilians," and "violates the requirement under international humanitarian law to take all feasible precautions to avoid civilian injury and loss of life."[289] According to Amnesty International weapons investigator Brian Castner, whether this constitutes a war crime depends on "the intended target of this attack, and the intended use".[290][291][292] Its use is consideed an incendiary weapon, which are banned under international law in areas with high population density.[293] Gaza is one of the most densely populated areas in the world, and nearly half of the population are children.[294][295][296][297]
Amnesty International reported that the IDF fired white phosphorus shells into the populated town of Dhayra, Lebanon, on October 16, hospitalizing nine civilians and setting fire to civilian objects.[298] Aya Majzoub, the Deputy Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa at Amnesty International, described the attack as a violation of international law that needed to be investigated as a war crime, and that it "seriously endangered the lives of civilians, many of whom were hospitalized and displaced, and whose homes and cars caught fire."[299]
Indiscriminate attacks
The United Nations announced Israeli air operations had targeted residential towers, buildings, schools, and UNRWA premises, resulting in thousands of civilian casualties in Gaza.[264] Human rights experts described Israel's indiscriminate airstrikes as a war crime, an accusation that Israel has denied.[264][260] UNRWA called on Israel to not bomb 270,000 sheltered Palestinians, stressing that international law forbids their targeting. The IDF said it was controlling attacks to provide a safe evacuation path.[300] IDF spokesperson Daniel Hagari stated "while balancing accuracy with the scope of damage, right now we’re focused on what causes maximum damage".[301] The IDF later asserted Hagari's quote was in solely in reference to its targeting of Hamas military capabilities and had been "selectively misinterpreted and misquoted".[302]
Al-Shati refugee camp airstrike
On October 9, the IDF carried out an airstrike on the densely populated Al-Shati refugee camp.[303] Palestinian media reported that this strike resulted in numerous civilian casualties and the destruction of four mosques, including the al-Gharbi mosque, Yassin mosque, and al-Sousi mosque, all of which were confirmed destroyed by satellite footage.[304] Under the Rome Statute, it is a war crime to intentionally attack places of worship in non-international conflict.[305] The Al-Shati camp, established in 1948 to shelter Palestinians displaced during the 1948 Arab-Israeli War, is home to over 90,000 refugees and covers an area of 0.52 km².[306] According to the Palestine News Agency, the airstrikes in the Al-Shati refugee camp were described as a "massacre" by the Palestinian Ministry of Health.[307][308]
Jabalia refugee camp airstrikes
Since 9 October 2023, the IDF has carried out several airstrikes on the Jabalia refugee camp in Gaza.[309] The attack on 9 October resulted in the deaths of over 60 civilians and extensive damage to the market.[310] The Jabalia market was a commercial center located in the northeastern part of Gaza City, known for its lively atmosphere.[311] As a result of Israeli airstrikes in other Gaza areas, internally displaced individuals sought refuge in the camp, causing the market to be densely populated at the time of the airstrike.[312] The attack targeted the al-Trans area, but the entire market, along with adjacent buildings, was severely affected.[313][314][315]
On 31 October the camp was bombed again by Israeli fighter jets, and struck again on November 1.[316][317] IDF said the attack was meant to target Ibrahim Biari, who the IDF said was a key leader of the 7 October attacks, as well as a "vast underground tunnel complex" beneath the camp that Biari was commanding operations from according to IDF.[318] Hamas denied the presence of any commander and said Israel was using these claims as an excuse for the attack.[319] Al Jazeera reporter Anas Al Shareef was on the scene, stating, "It's a massive massacre. It is hard to count the number of buildings that have been destroyed here."[320] Nebal Farsakh, a spokesperson for the Palestinian Red Crescent, described the scene as "absolutely horrific."[321] More than a hundred people were reported missing beneath the rubble.[322] The Gaza Interior Ministry stated the camp had been "completely destroyed," and the following day reported 195 people were killed and 777 injured, with 120 more missing beneath the rubble.[323] The October 31 attack was immediately condemned by the Egyptian, Saudi, Jordanian, and Qatari foreign ministries.[324] Bolivia severed diplomatic relations with Israel, and Colombia and Chile recalled their ambassadors.[325] Brazilian President Lula da Silva stated on X: "For the first time, we are witnessing a war in which the majority of the dead are children … Stop! For the love of God, stop!"[326] The UN Human Rights Office stated that the attack could amount to war crime.[327] UN special rapporteurs stated the attacks were a "brazen violation of international law – and a war crime."[328]
On 4 November, a UNRWA spokeswoman confirmed reports that Israel had conducted another airstrike against a UN-run school in the Jabalia refugee camp.[329] According to the Gaza health ministry, the attack on the Al-Fakhoura school killed fifteen and wounded dozens more.[329] According to UNRWA, at least one strike hit the schoolyard, where displaced families had set up their tents.[329] On 23 November 2023, an Israeli airstrike bombed the Abu Hussein School in Jabalia camp, which was being used by the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNRWA) as a shelter. At least 27 people were killed in the attack, with multiple injuries reported.[330] The Israeli missile fell on Abu Hussein School in the morning when thousands of people were sheltering inside of it.[331] The attack led to the death of at least 27 people and injuries. Among the dead were also children. The Palestinian Ministry of Health reported that about 100 other people were injured in the attack.[332]
UNRWA school airstrike
On 17 October the IDF carried out an airstrike on the UNRWA school in the Al-Maghazi refugee camp, killing 6 and injuring dozens. The school was sheltering 4,000 refugees. Philippe Lazzarini, the UNRWA Commissioner-General, stated the attack was "outrageous, and it again shows a flagrant disregard for the lives of civilians."[333][334]
Church of Saint Porphyrius airstrike
On 19 October an IDF airstrike hit part of the Church of Saint Porphyrius, a Greek Orthodox church in Gaza City, Israeli-occupied Palestinian territories, killing at least 18 Palestinian civilians who were sheltering in the church among over 450 Christians and Muslims.[335][336] The airstrike caused damage to the church's exterior and led to the collapse of an adjacent building belonging to the church complex.[337] The Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem denounced the attack as a war crime and accused the Israeli military of targeting churches and civilian shelters.[337]
Al-Muhandeseen Tower airstrike
On October 31, an Israeli airstrike hit Al-Muhandeseen Tower (the 'Engineers Tower'), a six-story apartment building in Gaza City, killing at least 106 civilians, including 34 women and 54 children.[338] About 350 civilians were in and around the building, including 150 seeking shelter after being moved out of other parts of the city. Without warning, at about 2:30pm, four missiles struck the building within 10 seconds, completely demolishing it. At the time of the attack, children were playing soccer outside the building, and residents and sheltering civilians were charging their phones in the building's ground-floor grocery store.[339] The watchdog Airwars reported 133 to 164 civilians were killed, including 36 women and 67 to 77 children.[340] On April 4, 2024, following an investigation, Human Rights Watch stated they found no evidence of a military target in the vicinity at the time of the attack, making the strike "unlawfully indiscriminate under the laws of war."[341]
Ainata airstrike
On November 5 an Israeli airstrike hit a car near Ainata, Lebanon, killing three children and their grandmother, and injuring their mother. The Israeli military admitted to striking the vehicle.[342] Human Rights Watch stated that their killings was a war crime that warranted investigation.[343] Najib Mikati, Lebanon's caretaker prime minister, called the attack a "heinous crime" and said that Lebanon would file a complaint to the U.N. Security Council.[342]
Flour massacre
On 29 February 2024, at least 118 people were killed and 760 injured after Israeli forces opened fire on civilians seeking food from aid trucks near to the Al-Nabulsi Roundabout on the coastal Al-Rashid Street in Gaza City.[344][345][346] Josep Borrell stated it was a serious violation of international humanitarian law.[347] The Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs called the attack a crime against humanity.[348] The Omani Foreign Ministry called the attack a violation of international law.[349] Amnesty International announced it was launching an investigation.[350] The United Nations Human Rights Office also called for an investigation, stating it had "recorded at least 14 incidents involving shooting and shelling of people gathered to receive desperately needed supplies".[351]
Subsequently, on March 3 2024, at least 9 people were reportedly killed in an Israeli attack on an aid truck in Deir al-Balah. On the same day, "dozens of casualties" were reported in another attack on food aid at the Kuwaiti roundabout in southern Gaza City.[352] On March 14, Israeli troops fired on Palestinians receiving aid at the Kuwaiti roundabout, killing 21 and injuring more than 150 others.[353][354] On March 23, Israeli troops once again fired on Palestinians waiting for aid at the Kuwaiti roundabout, killing 19 and injuring 23 others in what Gaza's media office called a "massacre".[355][356]
Violations of medical neutrality
Medical professionals alleged Israel broke medical neutrality, a war crime under the Geneva Conventions.[357][358] Numerous reports emerged of the IDF targeting ambulances and health facilities with airstrikes.[359][360][361] In a statement, the World Health Organization stated, "There are verified reports of deaths of health care workers and destruction of health facilities, which denies civilians the basic human right of life-saving health care and is prohibited under International Humanitarian Law."[362][363][364] The WHO additionally condemned Israel's order to evacuate 22 hospitals in northern Gaza, stating healthcare workers faced the "impossible" choice of leaving critical patients behind; risking their own lives by staying put; or endangering patients' lives by transferring them.[362]
On October 13 the Palestine Ministry of Health evacuated the Al-Durrah Children's Hospital in eastern Gaza after it was hit with a white phosphorus munition.[365] Hospitals are nearing collapse due to the lack of electricity and supplies, and some morgues have been so overwhelmed that medical staff have resorted to storing corpses in ice-cream trucks or on the cold floor.[366]
The IDF released videos showing the presence of weapons at the Al-Shifa Hospital, but CNN and other sources were sceptical of the claims.[367]
The presence of or use of weapons at a hospital does not negate its protected status, because this may be unavoidable for a medical facility operating in a war zone.[368] According to "Convention (I) for the Amelioration of the Condition of the Wounded and Sick in Armed Forces in the Field. Geneva, 12 August 1949. Commentary of 2016" it does not negate protected stats if a hospital has "small arms and ammunition taken from the wounded and sick and not yet handed to the proper service". There is also a narrow exception for the use of small firearms by medical facilities in war zones if "they use the arms in their own defence, or in that of the wounded and sick in their charge".[368] Medical facilities are also allowed to be guarded by combatants, such as "a soldier or small body of troops sent out to watch for the enemy" or "a soldier stationed to keep guard or to control access to a place" without negating their protected status.[369]
Targeting of journalists
As of 25 October 24 journalists had been killed in the conflict, making it the deadliest period in the conflict for journalists since 1992, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists.[370] Of the journalists killed, 20 were Palestinian, 3 Israeli and 1 Lebanese – a situation a CPJ spokesperson called "unprecedented".[370] The Arab and Middle Eastern Journalists Association has condemned the spate of deaths and restated that: "Targeting journalists is a stark violation of press freedom and international human rights law". Earlier in 2023, the CPJ released a report stating that 20 journalists had been killed by Israeli military fire since 2001, for which "to date, no one has been held accountable".[370]
During the conflict reports emerged that the IDF were deliberately targeting journalists.[371][372] According to the Council of Europe, the intentional targeting of journalists constitutes a war crime.[373] The killing of journalists by Israeli forces in Gaza had been a recurring issue, with previous incidents in 2018 and 2021.[374][375] On October 7, Israeli police damaged equipment of a television crew reporting in Ashkelon.[376] On the same day, a journalist named Omar Abu Shawish was killed in Gaza.[377] Journalists Mohammed El Salhi, Ibrahim Mohamed Lafi, Mohamed Jarghoun, Ibrahim Qanan, Nidal Al Wahidi, and Haitham Abdelwahid also faced various forms of violence or went missing.[378][379][380] On October 10, 2023, Israeli airstrikes bombed a residential building housing journalists' offices, killing at least three journalists along with civilians.[381][382][383][384] Salam Khalil, the head of the Gaza Journalists Syndicate's Committee of Women Journalists, was also killed in an Israeli strike on the same day.[385] On 13 October, in southern Lebanon, the IDF attacked a group of seven journalists in two strikes, killing Reuters journalist Issam Abdallah and injuring six others. Amnesty International found that the group was visibly identifiable as journalists, and called for the incident to be investigated as a war crime.[386][387]
In response to the killing of journalist Wael Dahdouh's family on 25 October, Robert Mardini, the Director-General of the Red Cross called the targeting of journalists a violation of international law.[388] Aidan White, the former head of the International Federation of Journalists stated "journalists are a target" and the attack would "shock journalists all around the world".[389] Al Jazeera presenter Tamer Almisshal stated, "A family of a journalist has been targeted."[390]
Summary executions
OHCHR stated on 20 December it had received reports of Israeli soldiers summarily killing eleven unarmed men in Rimal.[391] Al Jazeera reported that the number summarily executed was 15, killed during an apartment raid. The execution was witnessed by the families of the men.[392] Middlesex University professor William Schabas stated, "It's not really important to demonstrate that they're civilians. Summary executions even of fighters, even of combatants is a war crime."[393] Euro-Med Monitor told Al Jazeera they believe there is a pattern of "systematic" killing, that "In at least 13 of field executions, we corroborated that it was arbitrary on the part of the Israeli forces." On 26 December 2023, Euro-Med Monitor submitted a file to the International Criminal Court and United Nations special rapporteurs documenting dozens of cases of field executions carried out by Israeli forces and calling for an investigation.[394][395][396] In March 2024, video of an IDF soldier bragging about killing an elderly deaf man hiding under his bed was released, leading the Council on American-Islamic Relations to condemn the killing as an execution and war crime.[397][398] The Israeli military stated they would begin a probe into the incident.[399]
Defense officials told Haaretz that the Israeli army had created kill zones in Gaza, in which any person who crossed an "invisible line" was killed.[400]
Killing of surrendered people
Surrendered Palestinians
On 10 October, the Israeli Defence Force published a video that appeared to show IDF soldiers shooting four surrendering Palestinians.[401][402] Footage analysis indicated the men appeared to be surrendering, with three men getting on the ground with their arms raised, one waving a piece of white clothing. None of them appeared to be armed at the time of the shooting, while a subsequent video showed the bodies had been moved, with weapons placed near them on the ground. The analysis concluded the four men were unarmed Palestinians who left Gaza through a breach in the separation wall.[401] An IDF spokesman said he had no comment.[401] Killing surrendered civilians or combatants is a war crime.[403][404]
In video footage dated 8 December 2023, the Israeli military is seen killing two Palestinians from the West Bank's Far'a refugee camp in what B'Tselem described as "illegal executions". One man holding a cannister was shot, and was then gunned down while he laid bleeding on the ground. A second man, who was completely unarmed and hiding under a car, was shot and killed instantly. The Israeli military later said they would investigate the attacks.[405]
Human rights groups documented multiple instances of civilians in Gaza being shot by Israeli soldiers while waving white flags.[406] The Human Rights Watch Israel-Palestine director stated Israel had a "track record of unlawfully firing at unarmed people who pose no threat with impunity – even those waving white flags".[407][a] In early January, a video surfaced dating to 12 November showing displaced Palestinians evacuating Gaza City, including a woman and her child. Despite the group clearly carrying white flags, the woman was reportedly shot and killed by an Israeli sniper.[409]
On 24 January 2024, British network ITV released footage of an Israeli sniper shooting and killing a man carrying a white flag whom the journalist had interviewed only moments before his death.[410] Both the Norwegian Refugee Council and Amnesty International termed it a possible war crime.[411] An IDF senior commander later stated, "There are mistakes, it is war."[412]
According to a witness interviewed by Al Jazeera, the corpses of 30 people were found on 31 January 2024 inside a schoolyard in northern Gaza, with the bodies reportedly blindfolded, and their legs and hands tied.[413][414][415] The Council on American-Islamic Relations said the incident should be probed and added to South Africa's ICJ case against Israel.[416] The Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs called it a "violation of all relevant international norms and laws".[417] The Canadian-Palestinian former peace negotiator Diana Buttu stated the incident was "clearly a war crime".[418] In March 2024, a man in Zeitoun was deliberately run over by an Israeli tank while handcuffed, according to the Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor.[419][420]
Footage obtained by Al Jazeera English showed two men waving white flags being killed by Israeli forces, then buried by army bulldozers.[421] The IDF confirmed the killing of the two men, stating they had been acting in a "suspicious manner" and didn't respond to warning shots; they buried them with bulldozers as they feared they were carrying explosives.[422] The Palestine Red Crescent Society condemned Israel's actions as "extrajudicial killings".[423] The Council on American-Islamic Relations called the killings a "heinous war crime".[424]
Surrendered Israeli hostages
On 15 December, the IDF released a statement announcing that they had killed three of their own hostages by friendly fire. According to the Israeli military, they "mistakenly identified three Israeli hostages as a threat" during operations in Shuja'iyya and subsequently fired at them, killing them.[425][426][427] According to an Israeli military official on 16 December, the three hostages were shirtless and waving a white flag. The official claimed that one soldier responded to this by "open[ing] fire" and "declar[ing] that they're terrorists"; more Israeli forces fired, killing two hostages "immediately" and wounding the third hostage, who appealed for help in Hebrew.[428] The wounded hostage was pursued into a nearby building by IDF soldiers, where he was killed despite continued pleas for help.[429] Though he claimed that the soldiers were "under pressure" when this happened, Lieutenant General Herzi Halevi also stated that "It is forbidden to shoot at someone who raises a white flag and seeks to surrender", a sentiment echoed by the former head of Mossad, Danny Yatom.[430] Nahum Barnea wrote that the killing of the hostages, unarmed and waving a white flag, was a "war crime" and that "international law is very clear on the issue".[431][432] A preliminary IDF investigation found soldiers were told to kill all fighting-age men who approached them.[433]
Abuse and sexual humiliation of detainees
Video evidence surfaced of what is described as a "flagrant violation of international laws related to the protection of civilians".[434] Israeli soldiers were shown surrounding detainees in Yatta, Hebron being dragged and assaulted by the Israeli soldiers. Many of the detainees had been stripped naked as a form of sexual humiliation, having both their arms and feet bound, and beaten with the butts of rifles and trampled.[434] Video evidence depicting degradation towards detainees shows Israeli soldiers transporting Palestinians from Ofer prison, all of whom are blindfolded and stripped completely naked.[435] In another video uploaded by an Israeli soldier, a blindfolded and bound Palestinian is shown kneeling on the ground. The soldier taunts him in Arabic, telling him "صباح الخير يا قحبة" (Good morning, whore) before repeatedly kicking and spitting on him.[436]
Sexual violence
On 19 February 2024, a group of United Nations special rapporteurs released a report stating, "Palestinian women and girls in detention have also been subjected to multiple forms of sexual assault, such as being stripped naked and searched by male Israeli army officers. At least two female Palestinian detainees were reportedly raped".[437] In response to the report, a spokesman for the U.S. Department of State said, "Civilians and detainees must be treated humanely, and in accordance with international humanitarian law."[438] Physicians for Human Rights-Israel also described the sexual humiliation of detainees, including sexual insults and urination on prisoners.[439] The Palestinian Prisoner's Society stated men had been subjected to severe sexual assault, including attempted rape and violating strip searches.[440]
Allegations of genocide
On 17 October, 10 days after the start of the war, 880 scholars of international law and genocide signed a public statement saying: "As scholars and practitioners of international law, conflict studies, and genocide studies, we are compelled to sound the alarm about the possibility of the crime of genocide being perpetrated by Israeli forces against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip."[441] The statement called on UN bodies, including the UN Office on Genocide Prevention, as well as the Office of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court to "immediately intervene, to carry out the necessary investigations, and invoke the necessary warning procedures to protect the Palestinian population from genocide".[441]
On 19 October 2023, amid the 2023 Hamas–Israel war, 100 civil society organizations and six genocide scholars sent a letter to Karim Khan, Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, calling on him to issue arrest warrants to Israeli officials for cases already before the prosecutor; to investigate the new crimes committed in the Palestinian territories, including incitement to genocide, since 7 October; to issue a preventive statement against war crimes; and to remind all states of their obligations under international law.[442] The letter noted that Israeli officials, in their statements, had indicated "clear intent to commit war crimes, crimes against humanity and incitement to commit genocide, using dehumanizing language to describe Palestinians". The six specialist genocide scholars that signed the document were Raz Segal, Barry Trachtenberg, Robert McNeil, Damien Short, Taner Akçam and Victoria Sanford.[442] The same day, lawyers at the Center for Constitutional Rights stated that Israel's tactics were "calculated to destroy the Palestinian population in Gaza", and warned the Biden administration that “U.S. officials can be held responsible for their failure to prevent Israel’s unfolding genocide, as well as for their complicity, by encouraging it and materially supporting it."[443] On 13 December, FIDH, the world's third-oldest human rights organization, stated Israel's actions in Gaza constituted an unfolding genocide.[444]
On 28 October Craig Mokhiber stepped down as the director of the New York office of the UN's High Commissioner for Human Rights over the organization's response to the war in Gaza. In his resignation letter, he described Israel's military conduct, and broader actions toward Palestinians, as "a textbook case of genocide".[445][446][447]
In response to Israel destroying Gaza's universities, Muhannad Ayyash, a professor of sociology at Mount Royal University, charged Israel with epistemicide.[448][449] Ayyash stated Israel sought to "erase Palestinian existence from history, and that includes a targeting of Palestinians as a cultural group, as a group of people that produce knowledge".[448] Steven Thrasher, an American academic, wrote that Israel was also destroying the "possibility of building new knowledge and political realities".[450] On 6 December 2023, Israel destroyed the municipal archives of Gaza City, leading Birzeit University to state Israel was "deliberately razing all forms of life."[451] Israel bombed more than 200 of Gaza's most important cultural heritage sites,[452] including the Church of Saint Porphyrius and the Great Omari Mosque.[453][454] French historian Jean-Pierre Filiu stated Israel was destroying a 4,000 year-old culture in Gaza, stating, "the memory of humanity is being erased before our eyes".[455]
Israel was further accused of scholasticide, or "intentional destruction of cultural heritage".[456] Birzeit University condemned Israel in January 2024, after the IDF bombed Israa University, stating Israel had stolen 3,000 rare artifacts and calling it "a continuation of the genocide being carried out in Gaza Strip."[457][b] The Palestinian Ministry of Education and Higher Education called the bombing a "clear violation of all international laws".[459] The Council on American-Islamic Relations called the artifact theft part of Israel's "ongoing genocide" and a "war crime of cultural theft".[460] On 25 February 2024, the director of literature in the Palestinian Ministry of Culture accused Israel of committing cultural genocide in Gaza, stating it was "destroying cultural life and creativity" and thus "erasing Palestinian identity".[461]
Israel was also charged with committing ecocide.[462] The Environment Quality Authority stated Israel had destroyed "all components of biological diversity, including plants and microorganisms."[463] The Century Foundation stated Gaza's "environmental resources are being poisoned, depleted, or otherwise destroyed, and may take generations to recover."[464] An analysis by The Guardian found that 38-48% of tree cover and farmland had been destroyed since 7 October.[465]
On 29 December 2023, South Africa filed the case South Africa v. Israel (Genocide Convention) against Israel at the International Court of Justice, alleging that Israel "is committing genocide in manifest violation of the Genocide Convention".[466][467][468] South Africa asked the ICJ to issue provisional measures, including ordering Israel to halt its military campaign in Gaza.[467]
In February 2024, Michael Fakhri, the UN special rapporteur on the right to food, accused Israel of genocide, war crimes, and using starvation as a weapon. He stated, "Intentionally depriving people of food is clearly a war crime. Israel has announced its intention to destroy the Palestinian people, in whole or in part, simply for being Palestinian. In my view as a UN human rights expert, this is now a situation of genocide. This means the state of Israel in its entirety is culpable and should be held accountable – not just individuals or this government or that person."[469]
On 26 March, 2024, the UN special rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, Francesca Albanese, presented a report to the UN finding reasonable grounds that Israel had committed genocide in Gaza.[470][471][472] She stated that "there are reasonable grounds to believe that the threshold indicating the commission of the crime of genocide against Palestinians as a group in Gaza has been met. Specifically, Israel has committed three acts of genocide with the requisite intent: causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group; deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part; and imposing measures intended to prevent birth within the group."[471]
Other incidents
Israeli settlements
According to Article 8 (2) (b) (viii) of the Rome Statute, "the transfer, directly or indirectly, by an Occupying Power of parts of its own civilian population to the territory it occupies (...)" is a war crime.[473][474][475] According to Michael Bothe, this provision was adopted with a view to prosecutions over Israeli settlements.[476] Israel's vote against the Rome Statute's adoption was explained on concerns that Article 8 (2) (b) (viii) would lead to Israel's occupation policy being ruled criminal.[474] In 2017, the country adopted the Settlement Regulation Law despite concerns that it could lead to prosecutions at the International Criminal Court.[475]
According to Michael Lynk, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian Territory occupied since 1967, "the Israeli settlements violate the absolute prohibition against the transfer by an occupying power of parts of its civilian population into an occupied territory". He therefore asked international community to designate the Israeli settlements creation as a war crime under the 1998 Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court.[477]
In a 2020 article in Revue des droits de l'homme, Ghislain Poissonnier and Eric David state that "Israel’s establishment of settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territory includes the elements of the war crime of Article 8 (2) (b) (viii) of the Rome Statute, namely its legal element, its material element and its mental element. It will therefore be easy for the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court to establish the criminal responsibility of the Israeli leaders, who organize the settlement policy."[473] International law expert Victor Kattan also views the settlements as illegal under the Rome Statute.[475]
As part of the International Criminal Court investigation in Palestine, the criminality of the settlements is being investigated.[474][475] The underlying facts are well-documented and not disputed, but establishing the court's temporal jurisdiction is less clear.[478] Depending on its interpretation as an instantaneous, continuous or continuing crime, the establishment of settlements prior to 2014 (when the Rome Statute came into effect in Palestine) could also be prosecuted by the ICC.[479] Government officials, legislators, military commanders, and corporate executives could all be prosecuted for their role in the establishment of settlements.[480]International Criminal Court investigation
In 2021 Fatou Bensouda, the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, launched an investigation into alleged Israeli war crimes in the Palestinian territories since 13 June 2014.[481]
See also
References
- ^ a b "The Obligations of Israel and the Palestinian Authority Under International Law". Human Rights Watch. from the original on 13 October 2023. Retrieved 28 October 2023.
- ^ "Accountability for International Crimes in Palestine". ccrjustice.org. from the original on 7 November 2023. Retrieved 28 October 2023.
- ^ "Israel and Occupied Palestinian Territories". Amnesty International. from the original on 11 October 2023. Retrieved 9 October 2023.
- ^ "Gaza: Apparent War Crimes During May Fighting". Human Rights Watch. 27 July 2021. from the original on 11 April 2022. Retrieved 9 October 2023.
- ^ "Indiscriminate violence and the collective punishment of Gaza must cease". msf.org. Médecins Sans Frontières. from the original on 22 October 2023. Retrieved 1 November 2023.
- ^ "Israel May Have Committed War Crimes in Jenin Operation, UN Palestinian Rights Official Says". Haaretz. from the original on 2023-07-07. Retrieved 9 October 2023.
- ^ "Israel/OPT: Investigate war crimes during August offensive on Gaza". Amnesty International. 25 October 2022. from the original on 19 October 2023. Retrieved 9 October 2023.
- ^ "Israeli Settlements Should be Classified as War Crimes, Says Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights in OPT". United Nations. from the original on 25 March 2022. Retrieved 9 October 2023.
- ^ "Human Rights Council-mandated Investigative Bodies". OHCHR. from the original on 6 November 2023. Retrieved 29 October 2023.
- ^ "The Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and Israel". OHCHR. from the original on 19 March 2023. Retrieved 29 October 2023.
- ^ "ICC opens 'war crimes' investigation in West Bank and Gaza". BBC News. 3 March 2021. from the original on 31 October 2023. Retrieved 13 October 2023.
- ^ "ICC prosecutor says mandate applies to current Israel-Palestinian conflict". Reuters. 10 October 2023. from the original on 12 October 2023. Retrieved 13 October 2023.
- ^ "Israel, citing 'bias,' won't cooperate with UN rights team". Associated Press. 17 February 2022. from the original on 17 October 2023. Retrieved 9 October 2023.
- ^ "Israel 'will not co-operate' with ICC war crimes investigation". BBC. 9 April 2021. from the original on 29 October 2023. Retrieved 29 October 2023.
- ^ Feleke, Bethlehem (2023-12-29). "South Africa files genocide case against Israel at International Court of Justice over Gaza war". CNN. Retrieved 2024-01-08.
- ^ "Israel to defend itself at world court after South Africa files genocide accusations". PBS NewsHour. 2024-01-02. Retrieved 2024-01-08.
- ^ "South Africa files ICJ case accusing Israel of 'genocidal acts'". BBC. 2023-12-29. Retrieved 2024-01-08.
- ^ Roelf, Wendell; Sterling, Toby (29 December 2023). "South Africa files genocide case against Israel at World Court". Reuters. Retrieved 7 January 2023.
- ^ "South Africa files case at ICJ accusing Israel of 'genocidal acts' in Gaza". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 2024-01-08.
- ^ "Israel officials support Gaza destruction, court hears". BBC News.
- ^ Albanese, Francesca (March 25, 2024). "Anatomy of a Genocide". un.org. United Nations. Retrieved 10 April 2024.
- ^ a b c Morris 2008, p. 404.
- ^ a b c d Jawad 2007, pp. 59–127.
- ^ a b c Esber 2009, p. 356.
- ^ Esber 2009, p. 356, referring to Aryeh Yitzhaki, Israeli historian who served as director of the IDF archives who stated : "In almost every conquered village (...), Zionist forces committed war crimes such as indiscriminate killings, massacres and rapes."
- ^ a b "Interview with Benny Morris by Ari Shavit in Ha'aretz on September 1st 2004". Haaretz. from the original on 2009-09-06. Retrieved 2023-11-10.
- ^ Morris 2008, p. 333.
- ^ Morris 2004, pp. 469–470.
- ^ Pappé 2006, p. 196.
- ^ Morris, Benny (1994). Israel's Border Wars, 1949–1956: Arab Infiltration, Israeli Retaliation, and the Countdown to the Suez War. Oxford University Press. p. 424. ISBN 978-0198278504.
But many Fedayeen and an estimated 4,000 Egyptian and Palestinian regulars were trapped in the Strip, identified and rounded up by the IDF, GSS, and police. Dozens of these Fedayeen appear to have been summarily executed, without trial. Some were probably killed during two massacres by IDF troops soon after the occupation of the Strip. On 3 November, the day Khan Yunis was conquered, IDF troops shot dead hundreds of Palestinian refugees and local inhabitants in the town. One UN report speaks of 'some 135 local residents' and '140 refugees' killed as IDF troops moved through the town and its refugee camp 'searching for people in possession of arms'.
- ^ Morris, Benny (2011). Righteous Victims: A History of the Zionist-Arab Conflict. Random House. p. 295. ISBN 978-0-307-78805-4.
In all Israeli troops killed about five hundred Palestinian civilians during and after the conquest of the Strip. About two hundred of these were killed in the course of massacres in Khan Yunis (on 3 November) and in Rafa (on 12 November).
- ^ Sayigh, Yezid (1997). Armed Struggle and the Search for State: The Palestinian National Movement, 1949–1993. Oxford University Press. p. 65.
Dozens of fid'iyyun were summarily executed, and 275 Palestinian civilians were killed as Israeli troops swept Khan Yunis for fugitives and weapons on 3 November.
- ^ Lucas, Noah (1975). The Modern History of Israel. New York City: Praeger Publishers. p. 356. ISBN 0-275-33450-3.
- ^ Bilsky 2004, p. 310.
- ^ Graham-Harrison, Emma (29 August 2015). "Israeli veterans recall horrors of country's victory in six-day war". The Guardian. from the original on 28 October 2023. Retrieved 28 October 2023.
- ^ Bron, Gabby , Yedioth Ahronoth, 17 August 1995.
- ^ Bar-Zohar, Michael 'The Reactions of Journalists to the Army's Murders of POWs', Maariv, 17 August 1995.
- ^ Prior 1999, pp. 209–210; Bar-On, Morris and Golani 2002; Fisher, Ronal 'Mass Murder in the 1956 War', Ma'ariv, 8 August 1995.
- ^ Laub, Karin , Associated Press, 16 August 1995. Retrieved from the Wayback Machine. 14 October 2005.
- ^ "Israel Reportedly Killed Pows in '67 War: Historians Say Deaths of Hundreds of Egyptians Was Covered Up". The Washington Post. 17 August 1995.
- ^ Segev, Tom (2007). 1967. p. 374.
- ^ a b Ibrahim, Youssef M. (21 September 1995). "Egypt Says Israelis Killed P.O.W.'s in '67 War". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. from the original on 22 February 2023. Retrieved 26 August 2019.
- ^ "tadumu rufat 52 shhydaan wkhtabaan min jundiin misriin" تضم رفات 52 شهيداً وخطاباً من جندي مصري [New Mass Grave of 1967 War POWs discovered in Ras Sedr]. Al Jazirah (in Arabic). 28 June 2000. from the original on 16 March 2023. Retrieved 28 October 2023.
- ^ Agence France-Presse (26 June 2000). "'Executed' Egyptain troops' grave found". Independent Online (South Africa). from the original on 21 July 2022. Retrieved 28 October 2023.
- ^ "חיילי צה"ל רצחו עשרות שבויים באחת ממלחמות העבר – הפרשה טויחה והושתקה" [IDF soldiers murdered dozens of prisoners in one of the past wars - the affair was covered up and silenced]. הארץ (in Hebrew). from the original on 2021-05-26. Retrieved 2021-05-26.
- ^ "Israeli Historian says 200 POWS in Egypt's care were also killed". deseret.com. Deseret. 26 August 1995. from the original on 1 November 2023. Retrieved 1 November 2023.
- ^ Bamford, James (2007-12-18). Body of Secrets: Anatomy of the Ultra-Secret National Security Agency. Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group. ISBN 978-0-307-42505-8. from the original on 2023-11-18. Retrieved 2023-11-09.
- ^ Risen, James (2001-04-23). "Book Says Israel Intended 1967 Attack on U.S. Ship". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. from the original on 2023-06-22. Retrieved 2023-06-15.
- ^ "Israel's 1967 attack on U.S. ship deliberate, book says – April 23, 2001". CNN. from the original on 2023-06-22. Retrieved 2023-06-15.
- ^ Pensack, Miriam (2017-06-06). "Fifty Years Later, NSA Keeps Details of Israel's USS Liberty Attack Secret". The Intercept. from the original on 2023-03-21. Retrieved 2023-06-15.
- ^ "Remember the USS Liberty? The US and Israel wish you didn't". Middle East Monitor. 2014-06-04. from the original on 2023-06-22. Retrieved 2023-06-15.
- ^ Oren, Michael B. (2001-07-23). "Unfriendly Fire". The New Republic. ISSN 0028-6583. from the original on 2023-05-15. Retrieved 2023-06-15.
- ^ Friedman 2006, p. 157.
- ^ Shahid, Leila (Autumn 2002). "The Sabra and Shatila Massacres: Eye-Witness Reports". Journal of Palestine Studies. 32 (1): 36–58. doi:10.1525/jps.2002.32.1.36.
- ^ "1982, Robin Moyer, World Press Photo of the Year, World Press Photo of the Year". archive.worldpressphoto.org. Archived from the original on 28 July 2012. Retrieved 16 August 2015.
- ^ Robert Fisk, Pity the Nation: Lebanon at War 2023-09-20 at the Wayback Machine, Oxford University Press 2001 pp. 382–383.
- ^ William B. Quandt, Peace Process: American Diplomacy and the Arab-Israeli Conflict Since 1967 2023-03-06 at the Wayback Machine, University of California Press p. 266
- ^ Yossi Alpher, Periphery: Israel’s Search for Middle East Allies 2023-03-06 at the Wayback Machine, Rowman & Littlefield, 2015 p. 48
- ^ Nathan Gonzalez, The Sunni-Shia Conflict: Understanding Sectarian Violence in the Middle East 2023-03-06 at the Wayback Machine, Nortia Media Ltd, 2013 p. 113.
- ^ Malone, Linda A. (1985). "The Kahan Report, Ariel Sharon and the SabraShatilla Massacres in Lebanon: Responsibility Under International Law for Massacres of Civilian Populations". Utah Law Review: 373–433. Archived from the original on 12 October 2017. Retrieved 1 January 2013.
- ^ Hirst, David (2010). Beware of small states: Lebanon, battleground of the Middle East. Nation Books. p. 157.
The carnage began immediately. It was to continue without interruption till Saturday noon. Night brought no respite; the Lebanses Forces liaison officer asked for illumination and the Israelis duly obliged with flares, first from mortars and then from planes.
- ^ Friedman, Thomas (1995). From Beirut to Jerusalem. Macmillan. p. 161. ISBN 978-0-385-41372-5.
From there, small units of Lebanese Forces militiamen, roughly 150 men each, were sent into Sabra and Shatila, which the Israeli army kept illuminated through the night with flares.
- ^ Cobban, Helena (1984). The Palestinian Liberation Organisation: people, power, and politics. Cambridge University Press. p. 4. ISBN 978-0-521-27216-2.
and while Israeli troops fired a stream of flares over the Palestinian refugee camps in the Sabra and Shatila districts of West Beirut, the Israeli's Christian Lebanese allies carried out a massacre of innocents there which was to shock the whole world.
- ^ Schiff, Ze'ev; Ya'ari, Ehud (1985). Israel's Lebanon War. Simon & Schuster. p. 282. ISBN 978-0-671-60216-1.
- ^ . Ahram online. 16 September 2012. Archived from the original on 6 October 2014. Retrieved 13 November 2012.
- ^ Austenfeld, Thomas; Daphinoff, Dimiter; Herlth, Jens (2011). Terrorism and Narrative Practice. LIT Verlag Münster. pp. 227–228. ISBN 978-3-643-80082-4.
- ^ U.N. General Assembly, Resolution 37/123, adopted between 16 and 20 December 1982. 29 April 2012 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved 4 January 2010.
- ^ Voting Summary U.N. General Assembly Resolution 37/123D. 4 June 2011 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved 4 January 2010.
- ^ Leo Kuper, "Theoretical Issues Relating to Genocide: Uses and Abuses", in George J. Andreopoulos, Genocide: Conceptual and Historical Dimensions, University of Pennsylvania Press, 1997, ISBN 0-8122-1616-4, p. 37.
- ^ William Schabas, Genocide in International Law. The Crimes of Crimes, p. 455
- ^ MacBride, Seán; Asmal, A. K.; Bercusson, B.; Falk, R. A.; Pradelle, G. de la; Wild, S. (1983). Israel in Lebanon: The Report of International Commission to enquire into reported violations of International Law by Israel during its invasion of the Lebanon. London: Ithaca Press. pp. 191–192. ISBN 978-0-903729-96-3.
- ^ Hirst, David (2010). Beware of small states. Nation Books. p. 153. ISBN 978-0-571-23741-8.
- ^ Schiff, Ze'ev; Ya'ari, Ehud (1984). Israel's Lebanon War. New York: Simon & Schuster. pp. 283–284. ISBN 0-671-47991-1.
- ^ Gonen, Rivka (2003). Contested Holiness. Ktav. p. 3. ISBN 9780881257991.
- ^ Lewis, Anthony (12 October 1990). "ABROAD AT HOME; The Israeli Tragedy". New York Times. Retrieved 9 September 2015.
- ^ *Text of Resolution at UN.org 2012-06-13 at the Wayback Machine (PDF)
- ^ "Rogue State: Israeli Violations of U.N. Security Council Resolutions". dissidentvoice.org. 27 January 2010.
- ^ "REPORT SUBMITTED TO THE SECURITY COUNCIL BY THE SECRETARY-GENERAL IN ACCORDANCE WITH RESOLUTION 672 (1990)". UN. 31 October 1990. Retrieved 7 November 2020.
- ^ Human Rights Watch (1991). World Report 1990 – An Annual Review of Developments and the Bush Administration's Policy on Human Rights Worldwide January 1991. Human Rights Watch. p. 480.
- ^ "B'Tselem Report". un.org.
- ^ "Al-Haq Report". un.org.
- ^ "Timeline: Key moments at the United Nations". Al Jazeera. 29 August 2011. Retrieved 8 November 2020.
- ^ a b HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH WORLD REPORT 1990 https://www.hrw.org/reports/1990/WR90/MIDEAST.BOU-04.htm#P361_86053
- ^ "THE MIDDLE EAST; 19 Arabs Killed in Battle With Jerusalem Police". New York Times. 9 October 1990. Retrieved 8 November 2020.
- ^ "Letter dated 2 November 1990 from the Charge d'affaires a.i.of the Permanent Observer Mission of Palestine to the United Nations addressed to the Secretary-General". United Nations. 28 October 1990. Retrieved 8 November 2020.
- ^ . Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs. 4 April 2002. Archived from the original on 18 February 2009. Retrieved 22 September 2008.
- ^ Matt Rees (13 May 2002). "Untangling Jenin's Tale". Time. from the original on 26 October 2014. Retrieved 28 September 2014.
- ^ "UN says no massacre in Jenin". BBC News. 1 August 2002. from the original on 5 December 2006. Retrieved 19 May 2012.
- ^ a b Bennet, James (2 August 2002). "Death on the Campus: Jenin; U.N. Report Rejects Claims of a Massacre of Refugees". The New York Times. from the original on 11 December 2019. Retrieved 19 May 2012.
- ^ "U.N. report: No massacre in Jenin". USA Today. Associated Press. 1 August 2002. from the original on 23 June 2015. Retrieved 28 September 2014.
- ^ McGreal, Chris; Whitaker, Brian (23 Apr 2002). "Israel accused over Jenin assault". The Guardian. from the original on 6 November 2023. Retrieved 30 October 2023.
- ^ "Shielded from Scrutiny: IDF violations in Jenin and Nablus". Amnesty International. November 2002. p. 2. from the original on 22 November 2018. Retrieved 19 May 2012.
Amnesty International's extensive research ... led it to conclude that ... some of the actions amounted to ... war crimes.
- ^ "Jenin: IDF Military Operations" (PDF). Human Rights Watch. May 2002. p. 3. (PDF) from the original on 11 October 2012. Retrieved 19 May 2012.
Human Rights Watch's research demonstrates that, during their incursion into the Jenin refugee camp, Israeli forces committed serious violations of international humanitarian law, some amounting prima facie to war crimes.
- ^ "Rights group accuses Israel of war crimes". The Washington Post. 4 November 2002. Retrieved 21 September 2008.
- ^ Greenberg, Joel (4 November 2002). "Amnesty Accuses Israeli Forces of War Crimes". The New York Times. from the original on 27 July 2018. Retrieved 20 January 2009.
- ^ MacWilliam, Ian (4 November 2002). "Amnesty says Jenin operation 'war crime'". BBC News. from the original on 5 January 2009. Retrieved 20 January 2009.
- ^ Beaumont, Peter (25 April 2002). "Not a massacre, but a brutal breach of war's rules". The Observer. London. from the original on 21 August 2014. Retrieved 21 September 2008.
- ^ Rabbani, Mouin. "The Only Truth About Jenin Is the Israeli Cover-Up". Washington Report on Middle East Affairs (May 2002). from the original on 15 September 2010. Retrieved 21 September 2008.
- ^ "Israel/Lebanon: Israeli Indiscriminate Attacks Killed Most Civilians". hrw.org. 5 September 2007. from the original on 25 March 2022. Retrieved 2 November 2023.
- ^ "Amnesty report accuses Israel of war crimes". The Guardian. 23 August 2006. from the original on 25 March 2022. Retrieved 2 November 2023.
- ^ "Goldstone Report" 2018-09-28 at the Wayback Machine, paragr. 1680–81
- ^ "Goldstone report: Israel and Palestinians respond to UN". BBC News. 29 January 2010. from the original on 15 December 2013. Retrieved 27 January 2011.
- ^ a b c Thomson, Alex (23 January 2011). "Israel aimed to 'cleanse' Gaza neighbourhoods in 2008 invasion". The Daily Telegraph. London. Archived from the original on 12 January 2022. Retrieved 27 January 2011.
- ^ "Israel soldiers speak out on Gaza". BBC News. 15 July 2009. from the original on 1 November 2011. Retrieved 30 January 2011.
- ^ "Key excerpts: UN Gaza report". BBC News. 15 September 2009. from the original on 22 November 2012. Retrieved 27 January 2011.
- ^ a b "Israel army 'used human shields'". BBC News. 2009-03-24. from the original on 2009-10-05. Retrieved 2023-10-11.
- ^ Macintyre, Donald (2009-03-24). "UN accuses Israeli troops of using boy, 11, as human shield". Belfast Telegraph. from the original on 2009-03-30. Retrieved 2009-03-26.
- ^ Clancy Chassay (2009-03-23). Palestinian brothers: Israel used us as human shields in Gaza war. The Guardian. London. from the original on 2013-09-06. Retrieved 2010-05-05.
- ^ a b Chassay, Clancy (2009-03-24). "Guardian investigation uncovers evidence of alleged Israeli war crimes in Gaza". The Guardian. London. from the original on 2014-08-25. Retrieved 2010-05-05.
- ^ "IDF soldiers guilty of Gaza abuse". BBC News. 2010-10-03. from the original on 2020-07-28. Retrieved 2020-03-15.
- ^ "Report of the United Nations Fact Finding Mission on the Gaza Conflict" (PDF). London: United Nations Human Rights Council. (PDF) from the original on 7 October 2009. Retrieved 15 September 2009.
- ^ Hider, James; Frenkel, Sheera (24 January 2009). . The Times. Archived from the original on 11 May 2011. Retrieved 25 August 2014.
- ^ a b "Israel admits using white phosphorus in attacks on Gaza"The Times 24 January 2009.(subscription required) 11 May 2011 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ a b c "Israel reprimands top officers over UN compound strike" 2014-08-10 at the Wayback Machine, BBC News, 1 February 2010
- ^ "IDF white phosphorus use not illegal". The Jerusalem Post. Associated Press. 13 January 2009. from the original on 2013-01-17. Retrieved 2010-03-24.
- ^ Esveld, Bill Van (25 March 2009). "Rain of Fire: Israel's Unlawful Use of White Phosphorus in Gaza". Human Rights Watch. from the original on 18 April 2015. Retrieved 6 June 2012. PDF 2017-02-10 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Israel used white phosphorus in Gaza civilian areas" 8 February 2015 at the Wayback Machine. Amnesty International (19 January 2009) Retrieved 30 May 2011
- ^ a b c Goldstone report 2018-09-28 at the Wayback Machine, UNHRC, para. 49
- ^ a b "Public hearings – Geneva, Afternoon Session of 7 July 2009", UNHRC 19 February 2011 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Mark Cantora, Israel and White Phosphorus During Operation Cast Lead: A Case Study in Adherence to Inadequate Humanitarian Laws, 13:1 Gonzaga Journal of International Law (2010), available at . Archived from the original on 29 March 2010. Retrieved 2010-04-03.
- ^ a b Amira Hass, "Norwegian doctor: Israel used new type of weapon in Gaza" 2015-09-24 at the Wayback Machine. Haaretz, 19 January 2009
- ^ . Atul Aneja, The Hindu, 7 January 2009
- ^ . Archived from the original on 19 February 2011.
- ^ "Fuelling conflict: foreign arms supplies to Israel/Gaza" 2023-07-08 at the Wayback Machine, Amnesty International, p. 17
- ^ Rory McCarthy (17 October 2006). "Gaza doctors say patients suffering mystery injuries after Israeli Attacks". The Guardian. from the original on 31 January 2017. Retrieved 11 October 2023.
- ^ "BBC: Israel troops admit Gaza abuses". BBC News. 2009-03-19. from the original on 2009-09-30. Retrieved 2010-03-24.
- ^ James Hider. "Israeli soldiers admit to deliberate killing of Gaza civilians". The Times. from the original on 2011-10-08. Retrieved 2023-10-11.(subscription required)
- ^ a b Bronner, Ethan (27 March 2009). "Israel Disputes Soldiers' Accounts of Gaza Abuses". The New York Times. from the original on 2017-10-23. Retrieved 2010-04-02.
- ^ "Israel IDF soldiers rebut claims of immoral conduct in Gaza". Ynetnews. 19 March 2009. from the original on 22 October 2023. Retrieved 11 October 2023.
- ^ a b Pidd, Helen (31 March 2009). "Gaza offensive: Israeli military says no war crimes committed". The Guardian. London. from the original on 2013-09-06. Retrieved 2010-04-02.
- ^ a b Yaakov Katz; Herb Keinon (17 July 2009). "Europeans funding 'Breaking the Silence'". The Jerusalem Post. from the original on 22 October 2023. Retrieved 11 October 2023.
- ^ "Soldiers' Testimonies from Operation Cast Lead, Gaza 2009", Breaking the Silence, 2009-07-15 13 October 2009 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Breaking silence on Gaza abuses". BBC News. 2009-07-15. from the original on 2009-07-17. Retrieved 2009-07-18.
- ^ Cnaan Liphshiz (16 July 2009). "IDF soldiers give testimonies to counter Gaza war crimes claims". Haaretz. from the original on 28 September 2012. Retrieved 4 June 2012.
- ^ Na'aman, Oded (2009-07-17). "Israel needs the truth about Cast Lead". The Guardian. London. from the original on 2013-09-06. Retrieved 2009-07-18.
- ^ Amos Harel (15 July 2009). "Barak: Criticism of IDF should be directed at me". Haaretz. from the original on 2011-05-12. Retrieved 2010-03-24.
- ^ Cnaan Liphshiz (16 July 2009). "IDF soldiers give testimonies to counter Gaza war crimes claims". Haaretz. from the original on 28 September 2012. Retrieved 4 June 2012.
- ^ Maayana Miskin (17 July 2009). "'Breaking the Silence' vs. 'Soldiers Speak Out' on Cast Lead". Arutz Sheva. from the original on 26 October 2021. Retrieved 11 October 2023.
- ^ "'Mistakes are not war crimes': UNHRC endorses Goldstone". The Jerusalem Post. 16 October 2009. from the original on 8 August 2016. Retrieved 11 October 2023.
- ^ "Soldier who stole credit card during Gaza op jailed" 2023-10-22 at the Wayback Machine. Ynetnews (1995-06-20). Retrieved on 2011-06-18.
- ^ a b Anshel Pfeffer (2 February 2010). "IDF downplays action against officers". Haaretz. from the original on 23 October 2012. Retrieved 9 April 2012.
- ^ a b "Gaza operation investigations: An update" 2010-02-14 at the Wayback Machine, Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs, January 2010, para. 100, p. 29
- ^ "Israel: Soldiers' Punishment for Using Boy as 'Human Shield' Inadequate". Human Rights Watch. 2010-11-26. from the original on 2011-06-20. Retrieved 2011-06-18.
- ^ Greenberg, Hanan (1995-06-20). "IDF commander questioned over Gaza killing". Ynetnews. from the original on 2012-10-23. Retrieved 2012-10-07.
- ^ El-Khodary, Taghreed (2009-01-09). "For Arab Clan, Days of Agony in a Cross-Fire". The New York Times. from the original on 2010-08-09. Retrieved 2009-02-07.
- ^ Kershner, Isabel (2012-05-02). "Israel Military Clears Soldiers in Deaths of Gaza Civilians". The New York Times. from the original on 2012-05-03. Retrieved 2 May 2012.
- ^ Yaakov Katz (6 July 2010). "IDF indicts Cast Lead soldier". The Jerusalem Post. from the original on 9 July 2010. Retrieved 18 June 2011.
- ^ Kershner, Isabel (6 July 2010). "Indictments in Gaza War Are Announced". The New York Times. from the original on 17 October 2023. Retrieved 11 October 2023.
- ^ . United States Department of State. 2011-04-08. Archived from the original on 2011-04-13. Retrieved 2014-08-17.
- ^ Richard Goldstone (2011-04-01). "Reconsidering the Goldstone Report on Israel and war crimes'". The Washington Post. from the original on 2011-04-06. Retrieved 2011-04-01.
- ^ "Authors reject calls to retract Goldstone report on Gaza". Agence France-Presse. 2011-04-14. Archived from the original on 3 January 2013. Retrieved 17 April 2011.
- ^ Hina Jilani, Christine Chinkin and Desmond Travers (2011-04-14). "Goldstone report: Statement issued by members of UN mission on Gaza war". The Guardian. London. from the original on 2013-09-30. Retrieved 17 April 2011.
- ^ Fisk, Robert (4 January 2019). "Judge Richard Goldstone suffered for turning his back on Gaza – but not as much as the Palestinians he betrayed". independent.co.uk. The Independent. from the original on 19 October 2023. Retrieved 18 October 2023.
- ^ Israeli army exonerates itself in scores of investigations into 2014 Gaza war crimes 2019-04-14 at the Wayback Machine, Ma'an News Agency 25 August 2016.
- ^ Gili Cohen, Closes Probes of Alleged Crimes, Some Involving Civilian Deaths, in 2014 Gaza War,'[permanent dead link] Haaretz 24 August 2016.
- ^ Assaf Sharon, "Failure in Gaza" 2015-09-19 at the Wayback Machine, New York Review of Books, 25 September 2014, pp. 20–24.
- ^ "The Ethics of Protective Edge". 16 September 2014. from the original on 30 October 2014. Retrieved 27 October 2014.
- ^ a b Neve Gordon, 'The Day After,' 2019-11-24 at the Wayback Machine London Review of Books 4 May 2015.
- ^ "This is How We Fought in Gaza – Soldiers ׳ testimonies and photographs from Operation Protective Edge". Breaking the Silence. 2014. from the original on 25 June 2017. Retrieved 17 June 2017.
- ^ Peter Beaumont, 'Israeli soldiers cast doubt on legality of Gaza military tactics' 2023-10-17 at the Wayback Machine The Guardian 4 May 23015.
- ^ Gili Cohen, 'Report: Army veterans slam IDF policy in Gaza war,' 2015-06-20 at the Wayback Machine Haaretz 4 May 2015.
- ^ Beaumont, Peter (13 July 2015). . The Guardian. Archived from the original on 9 October 2023.
- ^ "HRW: Israel likely to have committed Gaza war crimes" 11 September 2014 at the Wayback Machine, Ma'an News Agency 10 September 2014.
- ^ a b "Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories: Israel/Gaza conflict, July 2014 – Questions & Answers". Amnesty International. 25 July 2014. from the original on 22 November 2018. Retrieved 30 July 2014.
- ^ a b "Families bombed at home, Gaza, July–August 2014 (initial figures)". B'Tselem. 11 August 2014. from the original on 12 October 2023. Retrieved 11 October 2023.
- ^ "89 families killed in Gaza since hostilities began, Palestinians say". Haaretz. 24 August 2014. from the original on 30 April 2015. Retrieved 30 September 2014.
- ^ "World Cup fans killed as Israel hits Gaza". The Daily Star. 11 July 2014. from the original on 17 July 2014. Retrieved 17 July 2014.
- ^ "Israeli Army Says Killing of 8 Palestinian Family Members Was Not Intentional". Huffington Post. 10 July 2014. from the original on 14 July 2014. Retrieved 17 July 2014.
- ^ Simone Wilson,'The fury (and boredom) of war: Battlefield stories of courage, fear and frustration from IDF soldiers in Gaza', The Jewish Journal, 20 August 2014.
- ^ "Israel tried to limit civilian casualties in Gaza: U.S. military chief". Reuters. 6 November 2014. from the original on 9 October 2023. Retrieved 11 October 2023.
- ^ "How the AP Botched Its Investigation of Civilian Deaths in the Israel-Hamas War". The Observer. 10 March 2015. from the original on 17 October 2023. Retrieved 11 October 2023.
- ^ a b Taylor, Adam (9 July 2014). "'Roof knocking': The Israeli military's tactic of phoning Palestinians it is about to bomb". The Washington Post. from the original on 16 July 2014. Retrieved 17 July 2014.
- ^ "Israel's Response Is Proportionate to Hamas's Threat". The New York Times. 23 July 2014. from the original on 9 October 2023. Retrieved 11 October 2023.
- ^ "The current conflict between Israel and Hamas shatters myths". The Jerusalem Post. 10 July 2014. from the original on 17 October 2023. Retrieved 11 October 2023.
- ^ "The Latest Hamas-Israel Confrontation – Some Pertinent Legal Points". Jerusalem Center For Public Affairs. from the original on 2023-10-09. Retrieved 2023-10-11.
- ^ a b . Amnesty International. 25 July 2014. Archived from the original on 18 November 2014. Retrieved 22 November 2014.
- ^ a b Withnall, Adam (13 July 2014). "Israel-Gaza conflict: Israeli 'knock on roof' missile warning revealed in remarkable video". The Independent. London. Archived from the original on 1 May 2022. Retrieved 28 July 2014.
- ^ Elior Levy, 'One family, three dead, three maimed: 'Black Friday' in Gaza,' 2023-10-10 at the Wayback Machine Ynet 24 January 2015.
- ^ Sophia Jones (23 July 2014). "Palestinians In Gaza Denounce Israel For Saying It Warns Civilians Before Strikes". Huffington Post. from the original on 12 October 2017. Retrieved 11 October 2023.
- ^ . Middle East Monitor. 15 July 2014. Archived from the original on 26 August 2014. Retrieved 25 August 2014.
- ^ "Thousands of Gaza civilians flee, ignoring Hamas advice to stay". Sydney Morning Herald. from the original on 25 July 2014. Retrieved 1 August 2014.
- ^ a b "Deaths mount in Gaza and Israel as U.S. pushes cease-fire". CNN. 21 July 2014. from the original on 24 July 2014. Retrieved 22 July 2014.
- ^ a b "Hamas using human shields? Gazans deny claims". The Northern Star. 22 July 2014. from the original on 11 August 2014. Retrieved 26 July 2014.
- ^ "Israel/Palestine: Unlawful Israeli Airstrikes Kill Civilians". Human Rights Watch. 16 July 2014. from the original on 5 August 2015. Retrieved 3 August 2014.
- ^ 'No safe place for civilians' in Gaza, U.N. says 2023-10-09 at the Wayback Machine, Reuters.com; accessed 28 July 2014.
- ^ 'Warning on funds, UN doubles estimate of destroyed Gaza homes,' 19 December 2014 at the Wayback Machine Ma'an News Agency 28 December 2014.
- ^ Ashkenas, Jeremy; Tse, Archie (3 August 2014). "Assessing the Damage and Destruction in Gaza". The New York Times. from the original on 9 October 2023. Retrieved 11 October 2023.
- ^ "52 Palestinians killed in bombings of homes in Gaza Strip, which are unlawful" 2017-10-14 at the Wayback Machine, B'tselem, 13 July 2014; accessed 22 July 2014.
- ^ "Palestine/Israel: Indiscriminate Palestinian Rocket Attacks". Jerusalem: Human Rights Watch. 9 July 2014. from the original on 19 July 2014. Retrieved 22 July 2014.
- ^ Dorell, Oren (24 July 2014). "Analysis: Human rights or human shields in Gaza war?". USA Today. from the original on 25 July 2014. Retrieved 26 July 2014.
- ^ "Demolishing homes of suspects in abduction and killing of the three yeshiva students harms innocents. House demolition policy fundamentally unacceptable and unproven to be effective". B'Tselem. 18 August 2014. from the original on 10 October 2023. Retrieved 11 October 2023.
- ^ Harriet Sherwood (7 August 2014). "Palestinians returning home find Israeli troops left faeces and venomous graffiti". The Guardian. from the original on 11 August 2014. Retrieved 12 August 2014.
- ^ "Families under the Rubble: Israeli Attacks on Inhabited Homes". Amnesty International. 5 November 2014. from the original on 11 March 2015. Retrieved 10 November 2014.
- ^ Rudoren, Jodi (4 November 2014). "Amnesty International Says Israel Showed 'Callous Indifference' in Gaza". The New York Times. from the original on 8 November 2014. Retrieved 14 November 2014.
- ^ Smith, Amelia; Mosendz, Polly (5 November 2014). "Amnesty Accuses Israel of War Crimes in Damning Report on Gaza Conflict". Newsweek. from the original on 17 December 2014. Retrieved 17 December 2014.
- ^ "Response to Amnesty Report on Gaza Conflict". Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs. from the original on 9 November 2014. Retrieved 13 November 2014.
- ^ "Amnesty slams Israel for 'callous indifference' to civilian casualties in Gaza". The Jerusalem Post. 5 November 2014. from the original on 12 November 2014. Retrieved 13 November 2014.
- ^ "Strongly Condemns Placement of Rockets in School" (Press release). UNRWA. 17 July 2014. Retrieved 1 August 2014.
- ^ "Condemns Placement of Rockets, for a Second Time, in One of Its Schools". UNRWA. 22 July 2014. Retrieved 2 August 2014.
- ^ Nidal al-Mughrabi; Maayan Lubell (29 July 2014). "Carnage at U.N. school as Israel pounds Gaza Strip". Reuters. Retrieved 2 August 2014.
- ^ a b Gaza crisis: a closer look at Israeli strikes on UNRWA schools, Raya Jalabi, Tom McCarthy, Nadja Popovich, 8 August 2014, The Guardian
- ^ "Human Rights Watch accuses Israel of war crimes in Gaza". Reuters. Jerusalem. 11 September 2014.
- ^ Westcott (27 April 2015). "United Nations: Israel Responsible for Deaths at Gaza Schools". Newsweek. Retrieved 27 April 2015.
- ^ Ward, Olivia (24 July 2014). "Ban Ki-moon condemns shelling of UN-run school in Gaza". Toronto Star. from the original on 2 June 2023. Retrieved 11 October 2023.
- ^ Gisha. "Severe Electricity and Water Shortages in the Gaza Strip" (PDF). (PDF) from the original on 11 August 2014. Retrieved 31 July 2014.
- ^ Pollard, Ruth (6 August 2014). "Gaza ceasefire gives pause to assess destruction". Sydney Morning Herald. from the original on 11 August 2014. Retrieved 8 August 2014.
- ^ Shalom Bear (13 July 2014). "Electricity Knocked Out in Gaza (Thanks to Hamas)". The Jewish Press. from the original on 9 October 2023. Retrieved 11 October 2023.
- ^ "For second in time in days, Gazan rocket hits electricity line to Gaza". The Jerusalem Post – JPost.com. 15 July 2014. from the original on 22 October 2023. Retrieved 11 October 2023.
- ^ "Another Power Line in Gaza Damaged – Latest News Briefs – Arutz Sheva". Arutz Sheva. 15 July 2014. from the original on 16 March 2021. Retrieved 11 October 2023.
- ^ Greenblatt, Alan (29 July 2014). "Bombing Ruins Gaza's Only Power Plant". National Public Radio. from the original on 9 July 2015. Retrieved 8 July 2015.
- ^ Sherwood, Harriet (30 July 2014). "Gaza's only power plant destroyed in Israel's most intense air strike yet". The Guardian. from the original on 11 October 2023. Retrieved 11 October 2023.
- ^ Black, Ian (29 July 2014). "Israel is finding it harder to deny targeting Gaza infrastructure". The Guardian. from the original on 31 July 2014. Retrieved 31 July 2014.
- ^ "Gaza: Widespread Impact of Power Plant Attack". Human Rights Watch. 10 August 2014. from the original on 9 October 2023. Retrieved 11 October 2023.
- ^ Vause, John; Sanchez, Ray (4 August 2014). "Life in Gaza: Misery heightened by war". CNN. from the original on 19 October 2014. Retrieved 18 October 2014.
- ^ . Archived from the original on 29 November 2014. Retrieved 22 November 2014.
- ^ . Middle East Monitor. Archived from the original on 26 October 2014. Retrieved 20 October 2014.
- ^ "17 Journalists Killed in Gaza Since Beginning of Israeli Aggression". IMEMC. 26 August 2014. from the original on 9 October 2023. Retrieved 11 October 2023.
- ^ a b "Half of names of Gaza journalist casualties are terror operatives, or members of Hamas media". JPost. 14 February 2015. from the original on 22 October 2023. Retrieved 11 October 2023.
- ^ "AP journalist, others killed in Gaza by leftover ordinance". CBS News. 13 August 2014. from the original on 10 October 2023. Retrieved 11 October 2023.
- ^ a b Omer, Mohammed; Hatuqa, Dalia (5 August 2014). "Palestinians decry Gaza journalist killings". Al Jazeera. from the original on 7 September 2020. Retrieved 11 October 2023.
- ^ Fung, Katherine (30 July 2014). "Journalist Rami Rayan Killed in Gaza Attack (GRAPHIC)". The Huffington Post. from the original on 17 March 2018. Retrieved 11 October 2023.
- ^ . Ma'an News. 30 July 2014. Archived from the original on 3 August 2014. Retrieved 24 August 2014.
- ^ a b . Archived from the original on 6 October 2014. Retrieved 30 September 2014.
- ^ "Hamas caught using TV vehicles to transport missiles and shooting them at Israeli civilians". from the original on 8 April 2019. Retrieved 30 September 2014.
- ^ "Israeli Forces Must Be Held accountable for Attacks on Journalists in Gaza, says IFJ". International Federation of Journalists. 25 July 2014. from the original on 23 October 2017. Retrieved 11 October 2023.
- ^ a b "Briefing Note IV: Unlawful Targeting of Journalists and Media Buildings". Al-Haq. 9 August 2014. from the original on 25 July 2019. Retrieved 11 October 2023.
- ^ "Israel warns foreign journalists covering Gaza fighting". Reuters. 19 July 2014. from the original on 9 October 2023. Retrieved 11 October 2023.
- ^ . Reporters Without Borders. 22 July 2014. Archived from the original on 29 July 2014. Retrieved 1 August 2014.
- ^ . Press Gazette. 24 July 2014. Archived from the original on 12 August 2014. Retrieved 3 August 2014.
- ^ "UNESCO Director-General Statement regarding Abdullah Murtaja". United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. from the original on 19 November 2014. Retrieved 23 November 2014.
- ^ "UNESCO Corrects: Hamas Man Not a Journalist". from the original on 2023-11-18. Retrieved 2023-10-11.
- ^ "Examination of the Names of 17 Journalists and Media Personnel Whom the Palestinians Claim Were Killed in Operation Protective Edge" (PDF). terrorism-info.org.il. (PDF) from the original on 2023-10-09. Retrieved 2023-10-11.
- ^ . Maan News. 30 July 2014. Archived from the original on 3 August 2014. Retrieved 1 August 2014.
- ^ . Reporters Without Borders. Archived from the original on 4 August 2014. Retrieved 1 August 2014.
- ^ "Treasury Designates Gaza-Based Business, Television Station for Hamas Ties". from the original on 6 October 2014. Retrieved 30 September 2014.
- ^ Gaza bank, TV station see U.S. sanctions 2023-10-09 at the Wayback Machine, cnn.com, 19 March 2010.
- ^ "US sanctions Hamas bank, TV station in Gaza". Al Arabiya English. 18 March 2010. from the original on 26 November 2020. Retrieved 11 October 2023.
- ^ Deitch, Ian; Barzak, Ibrahim (31 July 2014). . Archived from the original on 12 August 2014. Retrieved 8 August 2014.
- ^ Gili Cohen, 'NGO accuses IDF of gross abuses during Gaza war,' 2015-09-11 at the Wayback Machine Haaretz 21 January 2015.
- ^ Palestinian teen: I was used as a human shield in Gaza 2014-08-26 at the Wayback Machine, 972mag.com; retrieved 22 August 2014.
- ^ Israeli forces use Palestinian child as human shield in Gaza 2014-08-28 at the Wayback Machine, Defence for Children International Palestine. Retrieved 22 August 2014.
- ^ a b Akram, Fares; Rudoren, Judi (25 August 2014). . The New York Times. Archived from the original on 19 May 2017. Retrieved 24 August 2014.
- ^ Cumming-Bruce, Nick (18 March 2019). "U.N. Panel Urges Investigation Into Israeli Shootings at Gaza Border a Year Ago". The New York Times. Retrieved 13 April 2019.
- ^ Ahren, Raphael (18 March 2019). "UN panel lists Israelis suspected of war crimes on Gaza border". Times of Israel.
- ^ "HRW accuses Israel, Palestinians of 'apparent war crimes' in Gaza". Al Jazeera. from the original on 31 October 2023. Retrieved 31 October 2023.
- ^ "Killing blockaded civilians and destroying infrastructure on a massive scale: Israel is committing war crimes in the Gaza Strip". B'Tselem. from the original on 18 May 2021. Retrieved 1 November 2023.
- ^ (PDF). OHCHR. Archived from the original (PDF) on 1 June 2021. Retrieved 1 November 2023.
- ^ "Israel/ OPT: Pattern of Israeli attacks on residential homes in Gaza must be investigated as war crimes". Amnesty International. 17 May 2021. from the original on 25 March 2022. Retrieved 2 November 2023.
- ^ "Israel/Palestine: Devastating Civilian Toll as Parties Flout Legal Obligations". Human Rights Watch. 9 October 2023. Archived from the original on 10 October 2023. Retrieved 13 October 2023.
- ^ "Revenge policy in motion; Israel committing war crimes in Gaza". B'tselem. from the original on 22 October 2023. Retrieved 12 October 2023.
- ^ Robertson, Nick (12 October 2023). "UN experts condemn attacks on civilians in Israel, Gaza as 'war crimes'". The Hill. from the original on 12 October 2023. Retrieved 12 October 2023.
- ^ Speri, Alice (9 October 2023). "ISRAEL RESPONDS TO HAMAS CRIMES BY ORDERING MASS WAR CRIMES IN GAZA". The Intercept. from the original on 22 October 2023. Retrieved 12 October 2023.
- ^ "Commission of Inquiry collecting evidence of war crimes committed by all sides in Israel and Occupied Palestinian Territories since 7 October 2023". OHCHR. from the original on 22 October 2023. Retrieved 12 October 2023.
- ^ . ABC News. 1 February 2024. Archived from the original on 1 February 2024. Retrieved 1 February 2024.
- ^ a b "The U.S. Is Giving Israel Permission for War Crimes". The Intelligencer. 13 October 2023. from the original on 22 October 2023. Retrieved 15 October 2023.
- ^ Garner, Bryan A., ed. (2007). Black's Law Dictionary (8th ed.). St. Paul, MN: Thomson West. p. 280. ISBN 978-0314151995.
Collective punishment was outlawed in 1949 by the Geneva Convention.
- ^ Klocker, Cornelia. Collective Punishment and Human Rights Law: Addressing Gaps in International Law. Routledge.
- ^ Regan, Helen (13 October 2023). "Israel calls on 1.1 million Gazans to evacuate south in order UN warns is 'impossible'". CNN. from the original on 22 October 2023. Retrieved 13 October 2023.
- ^ "Indiscriminate violence and the collective punishment of Gaza must cease". Doctors Without Borders. from the original on 22 October 2023. Retrieved 13 October 2023.
- ^ a b "UN experts say Israel's strikes on Gaza amount to 'collective punishment'". Reuters. 12 October 2023. from the original on 12 October 2023. Retrieved 13 October 2023.
- ^ Reed, John; Srivastava, Mehul (13 October 2023). "Israel tells 1.1mn people to leave northern Gaza". Financial Times. Archived from the original on 14 October 2023. Retrieved 13 October 2023.
- ^ Blumenthal, Paul. "Israeli President Says There Are No Innocent Civilians In Gaza". Y! News. HuffPost. from the original on 22 October 2023. Retrieved 13 October 2023.
- ^ Katz, Israel. . X. Archived from the original on 2023-10-14. Retrieved 14 October 2023.
- ^ a b c d e Lee, Georgina (11 October 2023). "What is a war crime and did Hamas commit war crimes in its attack on Israel?". Channel 4. from the original on 12 October 2023. Retrieved 12 October 2023.
- ^ Keaten, Jamey. "U.N. Secretary-General says Israel's complete seize of Gaza Strip will 'deteriorate exponentially' the already-dire humanitarian situation there". Fortune. from the original on 13 October 2023. Retrieved 13 October 2023.
- ^ Dannenbaum, Tom (11 October 2023). "The Siege of Gaza and the Starvation War Crime". justsecurity.org. from the original on 14 October 2023. Retrieved 31 October 2023.
- ^ Shurafa, Wafaa; Krauss, Joseph (14 October 2023). "Gaza residents struggle to follow Israeli evacuation order amid critical water shortage". PBS Newshour. from the original on 15 October 2023. Retrieved 15 October 2023.
- ^ "Water and Armed Conflicts". Casebook. International Committee of the Red Cross. from the original on 15 October 2023. Retrieved 15 October 2023.
- ^ "Water a 'matter of life and death' for Gaza after Israeli siege, says UN". Al Jazeera. from the original on 14 October 2023. Retrieved 15 October 2023.
- ^ Jobain, Najib; Kullab, Sumya (15 October 2023). "Water runs out at UN shelters in Gaza. Medics fear for patients as Israeli ground offensive looms". Associated Press]. from the original on 15 October 2023. Retrieved 15 October 2023.
- ^ Halpern, Sam (15 October 2023). "Israel resumes its supply of water to Gaza". The Jerusalem Post. from the original on 15 October 2023. Retrieved 15 October 2023.
- ^ "Renewed water supply to south Gaza agreed with Joe Biden: Israeli minister". Hindustan Times. 15 October 2023. from the original on 15 October 2023. Retrieved 15 October 2023.
- ^ O'Leary, Naomi. "Israel's move to cut Gaza off from food and water is against international law, says EU". The Irish Times. from the original on 15 October 2023. Retrieved 15 October 2023.
- ^ Kekatos, Mary. "Why women, children are disproportionately impacted by the conflict in Gaza: Experts". ABC News. Retrieved 19 November 2023.
- ^ "In Gaza, more than 700,000 children have been displaced – forced to leave everything behind". X post by UNICEF. UNICEF. Retrieved 13 November 2023.
- ^ . Al Jazeera. Archived from the original on 16 December 2023. Retrieved 12 November 2023.
- ^ . UN News. United Nations. 15 November 2023. Archived from the original on 30 November 2023. Retrieved 15 November 2023.
- ^