Auteursarchief: astrid

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[97]

INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT

SITUATION IN THE STATE OF PALESTINE: ICC PRE-TRIAL CHAMBER

REJECTS THE STATE OF ISRAEL’S CHALLENGES TO JURISDICTION

AND ISSUES WARRANTS OF ARREST FOR BENJAMIN NETANYAHU

AND YOAV GALLANT

21 NOVEMBER 2024

Today, on 21 November 2024, Pre-Trial Chamber I of the International Criminal Court (‘Court’), in its composition for the Situation in the State of Palestine, unanimously issued two decisions rejecting challenges by the State of Israel (‘Israel’) brought under articles 18 and 19 of the Rome Statute (the ‘Statute’). It also issued warrants of arrest for Mr Benjamin Netanyahu and Mr Yoav Gallant.

Decisions on requests by the State of Israel

The Chamber ruled on two requests submitted by the Israel on 26 September 2024. In the first request, Israel challenged the Court’s jurisdiction over the Situation in the State of Palestine in general, and over Israeli nationals more specifically, on the basis of article 19(2) of the Statute. In the second request, Israel requested that the Chamber order the Prosecution to provide a new notification of the initiation of an investigation to its authorities under article 18(1) of the Statute. Israel also requested the Chamber to halt any proceedings before the Court in the relevant situation, including the consideration of the applications for warrants of arrest for Mr Benjamin Netanyahu and Mr Yoav Gallant, submitted by the Prosecution on 20 May 2024.

As to the first challenge, the Chamber noted that the acceptance by Israel of the Court’s jurisdiction is not required, as the Court can exercise its jurisdiction on the basis of territorial jurisdiction of Palestine, as determined by Pre-Trial Chamber I in a previous composition. Furthermore, the Chamber considered that pursuant to article 19(1) of the Statute, States are not entitled to challenge the Court’s jurisdiction under article 19(2) prior to the issuance of a warrant of arrest. Thus Israel’s challenge is premature. This is without prejudice to any future possible challenges to the Court’s jurisdiction and/or admissibility of any particular case.

Decision on Israel’s challenge to the jurisdiction of the Court pursuant to article 19(2) of the Rome Statute

The Chamber also rejected Israel’s request under article 18(1) of the Statute. The Chamber recalled that the Prosecution notified Israel of the initiation of an investigation in 2021. At that time, despite a clarification request by the Prosecution, Israel elected not to pursue any request for deferral of the investigation. Further, the Chamber considered that the parameters of the investigation in the situation have remained the same and, as a consequence, no new notification to the State of Israel was required. In light of this, the judges found that there was no reason to halt the consideration of the applications for warrants of arrest.

Decision on Israel’s request for an order to the Prosecution to give an Article 18(1) notice

Warrants of arrest

The Chamber issued warrants of arrest for two individuals, Mr Benjamin Netanyahu and Mr Yoav Gallant, for crimes against humanity and war crimes committed from at least 8 October 2023 until at least 20 May 2024, the day the Prosecution filed the applications for warrants of arrest.

The arrest warrants are classified as ‘secret’, in order to protect witnesses and to safeguard the conduct of the investigations. However, the Chamber decided to release the information below since conduct similar to that addressed in the warrant of arrest appears to be ongoing. Moreover, the Chamber considers it to be in the interest of victims and their families that they are made aware of the warrants’ existence.

At the outset, the Chamber considered that the alleged conduct of Mr Netanyahu and Mr Gallant falls within the jurisdiction of the Court. The Chamber recalled that, in a previous composition, it already decided that the Court’s jurisdiction in the situation extended to Gaza and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem. Furthermore, the Chamber declined to use its discretionary proprio motu powers to determine the admissibility of the two cases at this stage. This is without prejudice to any determination as to the jurisdiction and admissibility of the cases at a later stage.

With regard to the crimes, the Chamber found reasonable grounds to believe that Mr Netanyahu, born on 21 October 1949, Prime Minister of Israel at the time of the relevant conduct, and Mr Gallant, born on 8 November 1958, Minister of Defence of Israel at the time of the alleged conduct, each bear criminal responsibility for the following crimes as co-perpetrators for committing the acts jointly with others: the war crime of starvation as a method of warfare; and the crimes against humanity of murder, persecution, and other inhumane acts.

The Chamber also found reasonable grounds to believe that Mr Netanyahu and Mr Gallant each bear criminal responsibility as civilian superiors for the war crime of intentionally directing an attack against the civilian population.

Alleged crimes

The Chamber found reasonable grounds to believe that during the relevant time, international humanitarian law related to international armed conflict between Israel and Palestine applied. This is because they are two High Contracting Parties to the 1949 Geneva Conventions and because Israel occupies at least parts of Palestine. The Chamber also found that the law related to non-international armed conflict applied to the fighting between Israel and Hamas. The Chamber found that the alleged conduct of Mr Netanyahu and Mr Gallant concerned the activities of Israeli government bodies and the armed forces against the civilian population in Palestine, more specifically civilians in Gaza. It therefore concerned the relationship between two parties to an international armed conflict, as well as the relationship between an occupying power and the population in occupied territory. For these reasons, with regards to war crimes, the Chamber found it appropriate to issue the arrest warrants pursuant to the law of international armed conflict. The Chamber also found that the alleged crimes against humanity were part of a widespread and systematic attack against the civilian population of Gaza.

The Chamber considered that there are reasonable grounds to believe that both individuals intentionally and knowingly deprived the civilian population in Gaza of objects indispensable to their survival, including food, water, and medicine and medical supplies, as well as fuel and electricity, from at least 8 October 2023 to 20 May 2024. This finding is based on the role of Mr Netanyahu and Mr Gallant in impeding humanitarian aid in violation of international humanitarian law and their failure to facilitate relief by all means at its disposal. The Chamber found that their conduct led to the disruption of the ability of humanitarian organisations to provide food and other essential goods to the population in need in Gaza. The aforementioned restrictions together with cutting off electricity and reducing fuel supply also had a severe impact on the availability of water in Gaza and the ability of hospitals to provide medical care.

The Chamber also noted that decisions allowing or increasing humanitarian assistance into Gaza were often conditional. They were not made to fulfil Israel’s obligations under international humanitarian law or to ensure that the civilian population in Gaza would be adequately supplied with goods in need. In fact, they were a response to the pressure of the international community or requests by the United States of America. In any event, the increases in humanitarian assistance were not sufficient to improve the population’s access to essential goods.

Furthermore, the Chamber found reasonable grounds to believe that no clear military need or other justification under international humanitarian law could be identified for the restrictions placed on access for humanitarian relief operations. Despite warnings and appeals made by, inter alia, the UN Security Council, UN Secretary General, States, and governmental and civil society organisations about the humanitarian situation in Gaza, only minimal humanitarian assistance was authorised. In this regard, the Chamber considered the prolonged period of deprivation and Mr Netanyahu’s statement connecting the halt in the essential goods and humanitarian aid with the goals of war.

The Chamber therefore found reasonable grounds to believe that Mr Netanyahu and Mr Gallant bear criminal responsibility for the war crime of starvation as a method of warfare.

The Chamber found that there are reasonable grounds to believe that the lack of food, water, electricity and fuel, and specific medical supplies, created conditions of life calculated to bring about the destruction of part of the civilian population in Gaza, which resulted in the death of civilians, including children due to malnutrition and dehydration. On the basis of material presented by the Prosecution covering the period until 20 May 2024, the Chamber could not determine that all elements of the crime against humanity of extermination were met. However, the Chamber did find that there are reasonable grounds to believe that the crime against humanity of murder was committed in relation to these victims.

In addition, by intentionally limiting or preventing medical supplies and medicine from getting into Gaza, in particular anaesthetics and anaesthesia machines, the two individuals are also responsible for inflicting great suffering by means of inhumane acts on persons in need of treatment. Doctors were forced to operate on wounded persons and carry out amputations, including on children, without anaesthetics, and/or were forced to use inadequate and unsafe means to sedate patients, causing these persons extreme pain and suffering. This amounts to the crime against humanity of other inhumane acts.

The Chamber also found reasonable grounds to believe that the abovementioned conduct deprived a significant portion of the civilian population in Gaza of their fundamental rights, including the rights to life and health, and that the population was targeted based on political and/or national grounds. It therefore found that the crime against humanity of persecution was committed.

Finally, the Chamber assessed that there are reasonable grounds to believe that Mr Netanyahu and Mr Gallant bear criminal responsibility as civilian superiors for the war crime of intentionally directing attacks against the civilian population of Gaza. In this regard, the Chamber found that the material provided by the Prosecution only allowed it to make findings on two incidents that qualified as attacks that were intentionally directed against civilians. Reasonable grounds to believe exist that Mr Netanyahu and Mr Gallant, despite having measures available to them to prevent or repress the commission of crimes or ensure the submittal of the matter to the competent authorities, failed to do so.

Background

On 1 January 2015, The State of Palestine lodged a declaration under article 12(3) of the Rome Statute accepting jurisdiction of the Court since 13 June 2014.

On 2 January 2015, The State of Palestine acceded to the Rome Statute by depositing its instrument of accession with the UN Secretary-General. The Rome Statute entered into force for The State of Palestine on 1 April 2015.

On 22 May 2018, pursuant to articles 13(a) and 14 of the Rome Statute, The State of Palestine referred to the Prosecutor the Situation since 13 June 2014, with no end date.

On 3 March 2021, the Prosecutor announced the opening of the investigation into the Situation in the State of Palestine. This followed Pre-Trial Chamber I’s decision on 5 February 2021 that the Court could exercise its criminal jurisdiction in the Situation and, by majority, that the territorial scope of this jurisdiction extends to Gaza and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem.

On 17 November 2023, the Office of the Prosecutor received a further referral of the Situation in the State of Palestine, from South Africa, Bangladesh, Bolivia, Comoros, and Djibouti, and on 18 January 2024, the Republic of Chile and the United Mexican State additionally submitted a referral to the Prosecutor with respect to the situation in The State of Palestine.

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For further information, please contact Fadi El Abdallah, Spokesperson and Head of Public Affairs Unit, International Criminal Court, by telephone at: +31 (0)70 515-9152 or +31 (0)6 46448938 or by e-mail at: fadi.el-abdallah@icc-cpi.int

END

NOS

STRAFHOF VAARDIGT ARRESTATIEBEVELEN UIT

TEGEN NETANYAHU, GALLANT EN HAMAS-LEIDER

21 NOVEMBER 2024

https://nos.nl/artikel/2545356-strafhof-vaardigt-arrestatiebevelen-uit-tegen-netanyahu-gallant-en-hamas-leider

EINDE

[96]

”EU-lidstaten kijken verschillend naar Israël. Zo is Hongarije uitgesproken pro-Israëlisch. Ook Nederland, Duitsland en Oostenrijk zijn meer pro-Israël. Landen als Zweden, België, Ierland en Luxemburg zijn veel kritischer.”

NOS

NOS

ZIE VOOR GEHELE TEKST, NOOT 95

[94]

EUROPEAN COMMISSION

STATEMENT BY PRESIDENT VON DER LEYEN WITH ISRAELI

PRIME MINISTER NETANYAHU

14 OCTOBER 2023

Prime Minister,

I was today in Kfar Azza. What I saw and what I heard is breaking my heart. The blood of people killed in their sleep. The stories of innocents burned alive or slaughtered in their homes. The parents hiding their newborn babies before confronting the terrorists. Children and elderly people ripped from their families and taken hostage, even Holocaust survivors. Over 1,300 human beings were murdered by barbaric terrorists of Hamas fighting against Israel.

They aim to eradicate Jewish life from the land, and they took action. This is the most heinous assault against Jews since the Holocaust. We thought this could never happen again, yet it did. In the face of this unspeakable tragedy, there is only one possible response: Europe stands with Israel. And Israel has a right to defend itself. In fact, it has the duty to defend its people. And we must call by their name the atrocities committed by Hamas. This is terrorism. This is an act of war. Nothing can justify what Hamas did. This is the time to stand in solidarity with Israel and its people. And this is why I am here.

Let me also be very clear that Hamas alone is responsible for what is happening. Hamas’ acts have nothing to do with the legitimate aspiration of the Palestinian people. On the contrary, the horror that Hamas has unleashed is only bringing more suffering upon innocent Palestinians. They are threatened, too. Hamas’ despicable actions are the hallmark of terrorists. And I know that how Israel responds will show that it is a democracy.

In recent days, I have also been in contact with King Abdullah of Jordan and President El-Sisi of Egypt. Europe will keep working for a peaceful and integrated Middle East. We know that Hamas’ actions risk to affect the historic rapprochement between Israel and its Arab neighbours. And we should observe very closely those who stand to gain from a perpetuating conflict in the Middle East, like Iran and Russia. So now is the time to work even more closely with Israel and with countries in the region for stability and against terror.

Finally, Jewish communities across the world are also deeply affected, including in Europe. Antisemitic incidents are again on the rise. And this is unacceptable. We are deeply concerned by the spread of online hate speech and fake news, which are proliferating at worrying speed and are even difficult to keep track of. We are already in contact with social media platforms to remind them of their obligations. There is no place and zero tolerance for hate in Europe, both online and offline, against anyone. Over the past years, the European Union has put the fight against anti-Semitism and the fostering of Jewish life in Europe at the heart of our action like never before. This is the moment for all of us to stand together.

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”Want in dit Israelische militaire Gaza Offensief stapelt Israel Oorlogsmisdaad

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”On 7 October 2023, Hamas-led militant groups launched a surprise attack on Israel, in which 1,195 Israelis and foreign nationals, including 815 civilians, were killed, and 251 taken hostage with the stated goal of forcing Israel to release Palestinian prisoners.^[84][85]”

”

A surprise attack by Palestinian group Hamas on Israel – combining gunmen breaching security barriers and a barrage of rockets fired from Gaza – was launched at dawn during the Jewish holiday of Simchat Torah.

Saturday’s attack came 50 years and a day after Egyptian and Syrian forces launched an assault during the Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur in an effort to retrieve territory Israel had taken during a brief conflict in 1967.

Here’s how the brazen assault unfolded:

03:30 GMT – Covering rocket fire

• At about 6:30am (03:30 GMT) Hamas fired a huge barrage of rockets into southern Israel with sirens heard as far away as Tel Aviv and Beersheba.
• Hamas said it launched 5,000 rockets in an initial barrage. Israel’s military said 2,500 rockets were fired.
• Smoke billowed over residential Israeli areas and people sheltered behind buildings as sirens sounded. At least one woman was reported killed by the rockets.
• “We announce the start of Operation Al-Aqsa Flood and we announce that the first strike, which targeted enemy positions, airports, and military fortifications, exceeded 5,000 missiles and shells,” Mohammed Deif, head of the Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, said.

19:00 GMT – Fighting continues

• Israeli air attacks continued late Saturday night as did rocket fire into southern Israel.
• Israeli troops were still fighting Hamas fighters in 22 locations near the Gaza Strip – a startling sign of the breadth of the assault.
• Israel’s military said it is still fighting “hundreds” of Palestinian infiltrators

ALJAZEERA

ANALYSIS: WHY DID HAMAS ATTACK NOW AND

WHAT IS NEXT?

11 OCTOBER 2023

https://www.aljazeera.com/features/2023/10/11/analysis-why-did-hamas-attack-now-and-what-is-next

On October 7, Hamas launched a massive military operation into Israeli territory. The shooting of thousands of rockets into Israel was followed by an attack by land, air and sea, with fighters penetrating deep into territory under Israeli control. They attacked military installations and temporarily took over various settlements. The death toll among Israelis has exceeded 1,200, including more than 120 soldiers; dozens of Israeli hostages were also taken into the Gaza Strip.

The planning of the operation took somewhere between a few months and two years, per different accounts from Hamas leaders. The depth and magnitude of the attack were unprecedented and took Israel by surprise. It was a reaction to changing regional dynamics and growing Israeli aggression.

While Hamas may appear to have fulfilled its declared short-term goals of deterring Israeli violations of Al-Aqsa Mosque and taking hostages to bargain for the release of Palestinian political prisoners held in Israeli jails, it does not appear to have a long-term end game. A heavy-handed response by Israel is ongoing – already claiming more than 950 Palestinian lives – but sooner or later it will have to end with mediation.

Why did Hamas attack now?

Hamas’s move was triggered by three factors. First, the policies of the far-right Israeli government enabling settler violence in the occupied West Bank and Jerusalem led to a sense of desperation among Palestinians and growing demands for a reaction. At the same time, the rising tensions in the West Bank caused by these policies necessitated the shift of Israeli forces away from the south and into the north to guard the settlements. This gave Hamas both a justification and an opportunity to attack.

Second, the Hamas leadership felt compelled to act due to the acceleration of Arab-Israeli normalisation. In recent years, this process further diminished the significance of the Palestinian issue for Arab leaders who became less keen on pressuring Israel on this matter.

If a Saudi-Israeli normalisation deal had been concluded, it would have been a turning point in the Arab-Israeli conflict, which may have eliminated the already weak chances of a two-state solution. This was also part of Hamas’s calculations.

Third, Hamas was emboldened after it managed to repair its ties with Iran. In recent years, the movement had to reconsider the political position it assumed in the wake of the Arab Spring in 2011, in opposition to Iran and its ally, the Syrian regime.

Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah has said that he was personally involved in improving the relations between Hamas and Damascus. A Hamas delegation visited Damascus in October 2022 and its political bureau chief Ismail Haniyeh travelled to Beirut in April and Tehran in June. Just last month, Nasrallah hosted the Secretary-General of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad Ziad al-Nakhalah and the deputy chief of Hamas’s political bureau Saleh al-Arouri.

Will there be a united front around Hamas?

Iran has denied direct involvement in Hamas’s operation but it has expressed support for it. Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps general Yahya Rahim Safavi said “we support this operation, and we are sure that the resistance front also supports this issue”.

However, Hamas’s realignment with the “resistance axis” does not necessarily mean there will be a united front on the ground confronting Israel. Hezbollah, for example, has not joined the fight. Currently, domestic politics in Lebanon are not conducive to a conflict with Israel, which is holding the Lebanese group back.

What Hezbollah is trying to do is to deter the Israeli army from going too far in its revenge against Hamas in Gaza, hence it is increasing the pressure on the Lebanese border. Its shelling of Israeli positions is most probably meant to have a psychological effect than a military one. It has also chosen not to overreact in relation to the killing of three of its members by Israeli bombardment.

However, both Israel and Hezbollah are on alert and tensions are high, which means miscalculations can happen.

What is Hamas’s end game?

Three days into Hamas’s surprising and overwhelming attack, it is not clear what its end game is and what it can do to reap long-term benefits. Its priority has seemed to be to take both military and civilian hostages to help deter aggressive Israeli retaliation and later exchange them for Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails.

However, Israel does not appear to be deterred. Hamas spokesperson Abu Ubaida has said that Israeli bombardment has killed four Israeli citizens held in Gaza. He has also warned that the movement will start killing hostages if Israel strikes civilian homes in Gaza without warning; this might backfire against Hamas if implemented.

The Hamas leadership has said that the objectives of the attacks are ending “Israeli violations”, securing the release of Palestinian prisoners, and “returning to the project of establishing a state”. Hamas may be able to secure a prisoner swap deal with Israel, although, in the past, many of those released from Israeli prisons had been quickly rearrested. But the group does not have a clear roadmap for moving forward on “establishing a state” and it cannot have one separately from the Palestinian Authority in the occupied West Bank.

What is next?

Israel has struggled to recover from the attack. It has intensified its bombardment of the Gaza Strip and announced a total blockade on the coastal enclave, turning off electricity and blocking humanitarian aid. Netanyahu’s government was already facing domestic turmoil before the attack due to its judicial reforms; its stability will now be tested even further.

Israel will have to decide whether to undertake a ground invasion and if it is worth the military and political costs. Whether it proceeds with it or not, sooner or later its military operation, including the excessive bombardment of the strip, will have to come to an end. At that point, Israel will have to ask for Egypt to mediate some kind of conclusion of this escalation and a deal to exchange prisoners.

When the Israeli assault ends, Hamas, which has gained more legitimacy in Gaza and the West Bank with its operation, will also face the challenge of translating it into policies and governance that would serve the Palestinians in the long term.

The United States, for its part, will have to put its normalisation mediation plans on hold for now. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken was expected in Israel and Saudi Arabia later this month to discuss normalisation talks, but his plans have changed and now include a visit to Jordan.

Given the current public mood in the Arab world after the Gaza attack, it would be too complicated to advance talks on a Saudi-Israeli deal. Most probably, these talks will be put on the shelf by the Saudis in the short term but not necessarily fully cancelled.

These developments work in Iran’s favour. With the progress of Arab-Israeli normalisation halted, Tehran can now pressure the US into re-entering a nuclear deal of some kind that would take some of the sanctions pressure off the Iranian economy.

Whatever mediation happens between Israel and Hamas eventually, it is unlikely to address the root causes of the conflict. There does not seem to be any political will within Israel to address issues like the imprisonment of Palestinians, the freezing of Palestinian funds, the dire socioeconomic conditions in Gaza and the occupied West Bank, or the continuing settlement expansion. This means the Palestinian-Israeli conflict will continue to fester and produce cycles of violence.

EINDE ARTIKEL

BASIC RULES OF THE GENEVA CONVENTIONS AND THEIR

[89]

AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL EN HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH OVER HET

ISRAELISCHE APARTHEIDSREGIME

ASTRID ESSED

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AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL INVESTIGATION CONCLUDES ISRAEL

IS COMMITTING GENOCIDE AGAINST PALESTINIANS IN GAZA

5 DECEMBER 2024

https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2024/12/amnesty-international-concludes-israel-is-committing-genocide-against-palestinians-in-gaza/

Amnesty International’s research has found sufficient basis to conclude that Israel has committed and is continuing to commit genocide against Palestinians in the occupied Gaza Strip, the organization said in a landmark new report published today.

The report, ‘You Feel Like You Are Subhuman’: Israel’s Genocide Against Palestinians in Gaza, documents how, during its military offensive launched in the wake of the deadly Hamas-led attacks in southern Israel on 7 October 2023, Israel has unleashed hell and destruction on Palestinians in Gaza brazenly, continuously and with total impunity.

“Amnesty International’s report demonstrates that Israel has carried out acts prohibited under the Genocide Convention, with the specific intent to destroy Palestinians in Gaza. These acts include killings, causing serious bodily or mental harm and deliberately inflicting on Palestinians in Gaza conditions of life calculated to bring about their physical destruction. Month after month, Israel has treated Palestinians in Gaza as a subhuman group unworthy of human rights and dignity, demonstrating its intent to physically destroy them,” said Agnès Callamard, Secretary General of Amnesty International.

“Our damning findings must serve as a wake-up call to the international community: this is genocide. It must stop now.

“States that continue to transfer arms to Israel at this time must know they are violating their obligation to prevent genocide and are at risk of becoming complicit in genocide. All states with influence over Israel, particularly key arms suppliers like the USA and Germany, but also other EU member states, the UK and others, must act now to bring Israel’s atrocities against Palestinians in Gaza to an immediate end.”

Over the past two months the crisis has grown particularly acute in the North Gaza governorate, where a besieged population is facing starvation, displacement and annihilation amid relentless bombardment and suffocating restrictions on life-saving humanitarian aid.

“Our research reveals that, for months, Israel has persisted in committing genocidal acts, fully aware of the irreparable harm it was inflicting on Palestinians in Gaza. It continued to do so in defiance of countless warnings about the catastrophic humanitarian situation and of legally binding decisions from the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ordering Israel to take immediate measures to enable the provision of humanitarian assistance to civilians in Gaza,” said Agnès Callamard.

“Israel has repeatedly argued that its actions in Gaza are lawful and can be justified by its military goal to eradicate Hamas. But genocidal intent can co-exist alongside military goals and does not need to be Israel’s sole intent.”

Amnesty International examined Israel’s acts in Gaza closely and in their totality, taking into account their recurrence and simultaneous occurrence, and both their immediate impact and their cumulative and mutually reinforcing consequences. The organization considered the scale and severity of the casualties and destruction over time. It also analysed public statements by officials, finding that prohibited acts were often announced or called for in the first place by high-level officials in charge of the war efforts.

“Taking into account the pre-existing context of dispossession, apartheid and unlawful military occupation in which these acts have been committed, we could find only one reasonable conclusion: Israel’s intent is the physical destruction of Palestinians in Gaza, whether in parallel with, or as a means to achieve, its military goal of destroying Hamas,” said Agnès Callamard.

“The atrocity crimes committed on 7 October 2023 by Hamas and other armed groups against Israelis and victims of other nationalities, including deliberate mass killings and hostage-taking, can never justify Israel’s genocide against Palestinians in Gaza.”

International jurisprudence recognizes that the perpetrator does not need to succeed in their attempts to destroy the protected group, either in whole or in part, for genocide to have been committed. The commission of prohibited acts with the intent to destroy the group, as such, is sufficient.

Amnesty International’s report examines in detail Israel’s violations in Gaza over nine months between 7 October 2023 and early July 2024. The organization interviewed 212 people, including Palestinian victims and witnesses, local authorities in Gaza, healthcare workers, conducted fieldwork and analysed an extensive range of visual and digital evidence, including satellite imagery. It also analysed statements by senior Israeli government and military officials, and official Israeli bodies. On multiple occasions, the organization shared its findings with the Israeli authorities but had received no substantive response at the time of publication.

Unprecedented scale and magnitude

Israel’s actions following Hamas’s deadly attacks on 7 October 2023 have brought Gaza’s population to the brink of collapse. Its brutal military offensive had killed more than 42,000 Palestinians, including over 13,300 children, and injured over 97,000 more, by 7 October 2024, many of them in direct or deliberately indiscriminate attacks, often wiping out entire multigenerational families. It has caused unprecedented destruction, which experts say occurred at a level and speed not seen in any other conflict in the 21st century, levelling entire cities and destroying critical infrastructure, agricultural land and cultural and religious sites. It thereby rendered large swathes of Gaza uninhabitable.

Mohammed, who fled with his family from Gaza City to Rafah in March 2024 and was displaced again in May 2024, described their struggle to survive in horrifying conditions:

“Here in Deir al-Balah, it’s like an apocalypse… You have to protect your children from insects, from the heat, and there is no clean water, no toilets, all while the bombing never stops. You feel like you are subhuman here.”

Israel imposed conditions of life in Gaza that created a deadly mixture of malnutrition, hunger and diseases, and exposed Palestinians to a slow, calculated death. Israel also subjected hundreds of Palestinians from Gaza to incommunicado detention, torture and other ill-treatment.

Viewed in isolation, some of the acts investigated by Amnesty International constitute serious violations of international humanitarian law or international human rights law. But in looking at the broader picture of Israel’s military campaign and the cumulative impact of its policies and acts, genocidal intent is the only reasonable conclusion.

Intent to destroy

To establish Israel’s specific intent to physically destroy Palestinians in Gaza, as such, Amnesty International analysed the overall pattern of Israel’s conduct in Gaza, reviewed dehumanizing and genocidal statements by Israeli government and military officials, particularly those at the highest levels, and considered the context of Israel’s system of apartheid, its inhumane blockade of Gaza and the unlawful 57-year-old military occupation of the Palestinian territory.

Before reaching its conclusion, Amnesty International examined Israel’s claims that its military lawfully targeted Hamas and other armed groups throughout Gaza, and that the resulting unprecedented destruction and denial of aid were the outcome of unlawful conduct by Hamas and other armed groups, such as locating fighters among the civilian population or the diversion of aid. The organization concluded these claims are not credible. The presence of Hamas fighters near or within a densely populated area does not absolve Israel from its obligations to take all feasible precautions to spare civilians and avoid indiscriminate or disproportionate attacks. Its research found Israel repeatedly failed to do so, committing multiple crimes under international law for which there can be no justification based on Hamas’s actions. Amnesty International also found no evidence that the diversion of aid could explain Israel’s extreme and deliberate restrictions on life-saving humanitarian aid.

In its analysis, the organization also considered alternative arguments such as ones that Israel was acting recklessly or that it simply wanted to destroy Hamas and did not care if it needed to destroy Palestinians in the process, demonstrating a callous disregard for their lives rather than genocidal intent.

However, regardless of whether Israel sees the destruction of Palestinians as instrumental to destroying Hamas or as an acceptable by-product of this goal, this view of Palestinians as disposable and not worthy of consideration is in itself evidence of genocidal intent.

Many of the unlawful acts documented by Amnesty International were preceded by officials urging their implementation. The organization reviewed 102 statements that were issued by Israeli government and military officials and others between 7 October 2023 and 30 June 2024 and dehumanized Palestinians, called for or justified genocidal acts or other crimes against them.

Of these, Amnesty International identified 22 statements made by senior officials in charge of managing the offensive that appeared to call for, or justify, genocidal acts, providing direct evidence of genocidal intent. This language was frequently replicated, including by Israeli soldiers on the ground, as evidenced by audiovisual content verified by Amnesty International showing soldiers making calls to “erase” Gaza or to make it uninhabitable, and celebrating the destruction of Palestinian homes, mosques, schools and universities.

Killing and causing serious bodily or mental harm

Amnesty International documented the genocidal acts of killing and causing serious mental and bodily harm to Palestinians in Gaza by reviewing the results of investigations it conducted into 15 air strikes between 7 October 2023 and 20 April 2024 that killed at least 334 civilians, including 141 children, and wounded hundreds of others. Amnesty International found no evidence that any of these strikes were directed at a military objective.

In one illustrative case, on 20 April 2024, an Israeli air strike destroyed the Abdelal family house in the Al-Jneinah neighbourhood in eastern Rafah, killing three generations of Palestinians, including 16 children, while they were sleeping.

While these represent just a fraction of Israel’s aerial attacks, they are indicative of a broader pattern of repeated direct attacks on civilians and civilian objects or deliberately indiscriminate attacks. The attacks were also conducted in ways designed to cause a very high number of fatalities and injuries among the civilian population.

Inflicting conditions of life calculated to bring about physical destruction

The report documents how Israel deliberately inflicted conditions of life on Palestinians in Gaza intended to lead, over time, to their destruction. These conditions were imposed through three simultaneous patterns that repeatedly compounded the effect of each other’s devastating impacts: damage to and destruction of life-sustaining infrastructure and other objects indispensable to the survival of the civilian population; the repeated use of sweeping, arbitrary and confusing mass “evacuation” orders to forcibly displace almost all of Gaza’s population; and the denial and obstruction of the delivery of essential services, humanitarian assistance and other life-saving supplies into and within Gaza.

After 7 October 2023, Israel imposed a total siege on Gaza cutting off electricity, water and fuel. In the nine months reviewed for this report, Israel maintained a suffocating, unlawful blockade, tightly controlled access to energy sources, failed to facilitate meaningful humanitarian access within Gaza,  and obstructed the import and delivery of life-saving goods and humanitarian aid, particularly to areas north of Wadi Gaza. They thereby exacerbated an already existing humanitarian crisis. This, combined with the extensive damage to Gaza’s homes, hospitals, water and sanitation facilities and agricultural land, and mass forced displacement, caused catastrophic levels of hunger and led to the spread of diseases at alarming rates. The impact was especially harsh on young children and pregnant or breastfeeding women, with anticipated long-term consequences for their health.

Time and again, Israel had the chance to improve the humanitarian situation in Gaza, yet for over a year it has repeatedly refused to take steps blatantly within its power to do so, such as opening sufficient access points to Gaza or lifting tight restrictions on what could enter the Strip  or their obstruction of aid deliveries within Gaza while the situation has grown progressively worse.

Through its repeated “evacuation” orders Israel displaced nearly 1.9 million Palestinians – 90% of Gaza’s population – into ever-shrinking, unsafe pockets of land under inhumane conditions, some of them up to 10 times. These multiple waves of forced displacement left many jobless and deeply traumatized, especially since some 70% of Gaza’s residents are refugees or descendants of refugees whose towns and villages were ethnically cleansed by Israel during the 1948 Nakba.

Despite conditions quickly becoming unfit for human life, Israeli authorities refused to consider measures that would have protected displaced civilians and ensured their basic needs were met, showing that their actions were deliberate.

They refused to allow those displaced to return to their homes in northern Gaza or relocate temporarily to other parts of the Occupied Palestinian Territory or Israel, continuing to deny many Palestinians their right to return under international law to areas they were displaced from in 1948. They did so knowing that there was nowhere safe for Palestinians in Gaza to flee to.

Accountability for genocide

“The international community’s seismic, shameful failure for over a year to press Israel to end its atrocities in Gaza, by first delaying calls for a ceasefire and then continuing arms transfers, is and will remain a stain on our collective conscience,” said Agnès Callamard.

“Governments must stop pretending they are powerless to end this genocide, which was enabled by decades of impunity for Israel’s violations of international law. States need to move beyond mere expressions of regret or dismay and take strong and sustained international action, however uncomfortable a finding of genocide may be for some of Israel’s allies.

“The International Criminal Court’s (ICC) arrest warrants for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity issued last month offer real hope of long-overdue justice for victims. States must demonstrate their respect for the court’s decision and for universal international law principles by arresting and handing over those wanted by the ICC.

“We are calling on the Office of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) to urgently consider adding genocide to the list of crimes it is investigating and for all states to use every legal avenue to bring perpetrators to justice. No one should be allowed to commit genocide and remain unpunished.”

Amnesty International is also calling for all civilian hostages to be released unconditionally and for Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups responsible for the crimes committed on 7 October to be held to account.

The organization is also calling for the UN Security Council to impose targeted sanctions against Israeli and Hamas officials most implicated in crimes under international law.

Background

On 7 October 2023 Hamas and other armed groups indiscriminately fired rockets into southern Israel and carried out deliberate mass killings and hostage-taking there, killing 1,200 people, including over 800 civilians, and abducted 223 civilians and captured 27 soldiers. The crimes perpetrated by Hamas and other armed groups during this attack will be the focus of a forthcoming Amnesty International report.

Since October 2023, Amnesty International has conducted in-depth investigations into the multiple violations and crimes under international law committed by Israeli forces, including direct attacks on civilians and civilian objects and deliberately indiscriminate attacks killing hundreds of civilians, as well as other unlawful attacks on and collective punishment of the civilian population. The organization has called on the Office of the ICC Prosecutor to expedite its investigation into the situation in the State of Palestine and is campaigning for an immediate ceasefire.

For the Hebrew translation of this press release, click here.

AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL

ISRAEL/OCCUPIED PALESTINIAN TERRITORY:

”YOU FEEL YOU ARE SUBHUMAN”:

ISRAEL’S GENOCIDE AGAINST PALESTINIANS IN GAZA

5 DECEMBER 2024

https://www.amnesty.org/en/documents/mde15/8668/2024/en/

This report documents Israel’s actions during its offensive on the occupied Gaza Strip from 7 October 2023. It examines the killing of civilians, damage to and destruction of civilian infrastructure, forcible displacement, the obstruction or denial of life-saving goods and humanitarian aid, and the restriction of power supplies. It analyses Israel’s intent through this pattern of conduct and statements by Israeli decision-makers. It concludes that Israel has committed genocide against Palestinians in Gaza.
A stand-alone executive summary is available in English and other languages: ‘You Feel Like You Are Subhuman’: Israel’s Genocide Against Palestinians in Gaza: Executive Summary (Index: MDE 15/8744/2024).

AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL REPORT

YOU FEEL YOU ARE SUBHUMAN

ISRAEL’S GENOCIDE AGAINST PALESTINIANS IN GAZA

DECEMBER 2024

file:///C:/Users/Astrid/Downloads/MDE1586682024ENGLISH%20(2).pdf

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”As part of the blockade, Israel prohibited travel in and out of Gaza, the import of goods into Gaza – including restrictions on food items, toys and paper – and export to Israel, the West Bank or foreign countries.”

BTSELEM.ORG

THE GAZA STRIP

11 NOVEMBER 2017

The Gaza Strip is the scene of a humanitarian disaster that has nothing to do with natural causes – it is entirely man-made, a direct result of official Israeli policy. Israel can choose to change this policy and considerably improve the lives of Gaza’s residents. It can also choose to continue this cruel, unjustifiable policy, which sentences the nearly two million people living in Gaza to a life of abject poverty and nearly inhuman conditions.

In early September 2015, the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development published a report on the situation in Gaza after eight years of blockade and three rounds of fighting between Israel and the Palestinians. The report cautioned that without significant changes to Israel’s policy, Gaza has no chance of recovery and will become unlivable by 2020. Rather than change its policies in the time that has elapsed since the report, Israel has made them stricter, the situation has deteriorated and Gaza has long since become unliveable.

Israel’s responsibility

Israel contends that its role as occupying power in the Gaza Strip ended in September 2005, when it dismantled all settlements there, withdrew its military forces and declared the end of the military government. Further to this position, Israel contends that it no longer has any obligations or responsibilities toward Gaza residents, other than minimal humanitarian duties designed to prevent a serious crisis in the Gaza Strip.

This position is entirely baseless. In the early years following the implementation of Israel’s Disengagement Plan, there was some vagueness regarding Israel’s legal obligations toward Gaza. However, since then, the conception of degree of responsibility as commensurate with degree of control has taken root. Though Israel is clearly no longer responsible for keeping the peace inside Gaza, and is not generally obliged to see to the welfare of its residents under the laws of occupation, it is still the power that shapes the daily lives of Gaza residents, and as such, also bears responsibility towards them.

Although Israel declared an end to its military administration in Gaza, it continues to control critical aspects of life there. It controls all border crossings by land, apart from Rafah, as well as Gaza’s sea and air space. This control allows Israel to exclusively monitor the movement of people and goods in and out of Gaza, which it regulates according to Israeli interests. This holds true even when Gaza residents wish only to transit through Israel in order to reach the West Bank or other countries.

Rafah Crossing, which is subject to Egyptian control, has been closed for the past few years.  Egyptian authorities open it only a few days every year. Yet even then, it may be used only by individuals who meet strict criteria – which are changed every so often. Regardless, using this crossing to travel to other countries involves a long and often dangerous journey; when the destination is no further than the West Bank (including East Jerusalem), or Jordan, this lengthy journey is particularly unreasonable.

The blockade and its ramifications

Isolating Gaza from the rest of the world, including separating it from the West Bank, is part of a longstanding Israeli policy. The implementation began in the 1990s, with the imposition of a closure on all the Occupied Territories and the introduction of the requirement for every Palestinian from these territories – with the exception of areas annexed to Israel – to request a personal permit to enter Israel, even if only for the purpose of travel between the West Bank and the Gaza Strip or abroad. Over the years, Israel has made it increasingly difficult to obtain these permits.

After the second intifada broke out, Israel tightened the restrictions on Palestinian travel, imposing serious restrictions on travel to and from the Gaza Strip, and cutting it off from the West Bank almost completely. Entry of Gaza residents into Israel for the purpose of family visits or reunification with a spouse was prohibited. Visits by Palestinian citizens of Israel and residents of East Jerusalem to relatives in Gaza were reduced to a minimum. In addition, Israel severely restricted the ability of the entire population of Gaza to travel abroad, with many prohibited from doing so altogether. Import and export were restricted and often halted. Israel also banned most Gaza residents from working inside Israel, taking away the source of income of tens of thousands. The restrictions Israel imposed on the movement of goods and workers caused a deep recession in Gaza, impaired its residents’ earning capacity and caused a sharp decline in living standards.

In the summer of 2007, after Hamas took over the Gaza Strip, Israel used its control over the crossings to put Gaza under a blockade overnight, turning almost two million people into prisoners inside the Gaza Strip, effecting an economic collapse and propelling Gaza residents into almost full dependency on international aid.

As part of the blockade, Israel prohibited travel in and out of Gaza, the import of goods into Gaza – including restrictions on food items, toys and paper – and export to Israel, the West Bank or foreign countries. According to documents exposed in October 2010 following a Freedom of Information petition filed by the Gisha organization, it emerged that Israel had employed a “deliberate reductive policy”, based on calculations of the minimal caloric intake required for Gaza residents to survive.

In June 2010, following international pressure on Israel after the takeover of the Turkish flotilla to Gaza, Israel decided to lift some of these restrictions. Among other things, Israel agreed to expand the list of goods cleared for entry into Gaza and allowed the entry of building materials for public and housing projects. As part of this new policy, Israel replaced the narrow list of items allowed into Gaza with a list of strictly prohibited items, such as weapons, as well as a list of “dual-use” items that Israel believes could have both civilian and military uses, which require an individual permit. The second list includes hundreds of items, the lack of which prevents development of factories and restoration of civilian infrastructure. The restrictions on export remained in place even after June 2010, leaving Gaza isolated and with no real opportunity for economic development.

One aspect of the blockade is the reduction of the area where fishing is allowed in Gaza. The Oslo Accords stipulate a range of 20 nautical miles (about 37 km) off the Gaza shoreline, but Israel has never allowed fishing farther than 12 nautical miles out to sea. Over the years, Israel has gradually narrowed the fishing zone, sometimes to three nautical miles only, and currently between six and nine. The Israeli military also restricts fishing in areas bordering Israel and Egypt. Soldiers fire at fishermen alleging they have sailed beyond the restricted zone, arrest them and confiscate their equipment. In this way, Israel prevents Gaza fishermen from reaching the rich fishing grounds located further out to sea, impedes the ability of thousands of fishermen and people working in related sectors to provide for themselves and their families, and denies Gaza residents an essential source of food.

The blockade has driven Gaza’s economy into collapse. In the first quarter of 2022, unemployment reached 47%. In the under 29 age bracket, it was 75%. Some 80% of Gaza’s residents depend on humanitarian aid, and about 60% suffer from food insecurity. In the year 2000, before the blockade was imposed, Gaza’s unemployment rate was 18.9%.

Infrastructure and public services in Gaza are collapsing. Of the water pumped in the Gaza Strip, 96.2% is contaminated and unpotable. Electricity is supplied for just a few hours every day, partly because of a fuel shortage caused by high costs, and partly because of restrictions Israel imposes on the entry of spare parts to maintain existing systems – including repairing the power station it bombed in 2006.

The lack of consistent power supply has disastrous effects. Routine power cuts damage medical equipment. Hospitals are forced to rely on generators and scale back services, including delaying non-urgent surgeries and releasing patients early. The intermittent power supply also impedes the routine operation of water pumps and wells. This interferes with the supply of water for household use and public institutions, which has been greatly reduced. Residents have no choice but to cut back on the amount of water they drink and buy desalinated drinking water from private suppliers. It is estimated that 68% of the desalinated water is also contaminated, increasing the risk of disease spreading among the population. Sewage treatment facilities are not fully functional. Treatment cycles have been reduced, and sewage is pumped into the sea after being only partially treated.

The blackouts also keep Gaza residents from leading reasonable lives: they preclude normal use of washing machines, refrigerators, water heating tanks and more. These appliances are an inseparable part of life for billions of people all over the world, including people who live mere kilometers away. In Gaza, residents can only use them during the few hours in which power is available.

The level of health services offered in the Gaza Strip falls far short of meeting the needs of the population, and many essential treatments are not available there. Israel prevents doctors from traveling to medical conferences and seminars to keep abreast of innovations in their field. In addition, bringing new medical equipment into Gaza, or spare parts to repair existing equipment, requires Israeli consent, which is often given after many delays and sometimes, not given at all. Patients requiring treatment that is unavailable in Gaza have to ask Israel for permits to travel to hospitals in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem. Israel rarely grants the permits, and restricts them to cases it defines as “life threatening” – a far cry from meeting the patients’ needs.

Military operations

Since the disengagement in 2005, Israel has launched several rounds of fighting in the Gaza Strip, killing thousands of people, destroying thousands of structures and severely harming infrastructure that was already on the brink of collapse. These attacks exacerbated the already dire situation in Gaza. The continued blockade prevents reconstruction, and tens of thousands of persons are still homeless in Gaza.

Operation Cast Lead: On 27 December 2008, Israel launched Operation Cast Lead, which lasted until 18 January 2009. According to data collected by B’Tselem, Israel killed 1,391 Palestinians during the fighting, at least 759 of them civilians who had not taken part in the hostilities. Of these, 318 were under the age of 18. Israel also caused extensive damage to structures and to infrastructure, including electricity, water and sewage facilities that were on the brink of collapse even before the fighting and were now rendered completely dysfunctional. According to UN figures, Israel destroyed more than 3,500 homes, leaving tens of thousands of people without shelter or a home to return to. During the offensive, Palestinians fired rocket and mortar shells toward Israel, with the deliberate intention of harming civilians. Three Israeli civilians and one member of the Israeli security forces were killed as a result. In addition, nine Israeli soldiers were killed, four of them from friendly fire.

Operation Pillar of Defense: On 14 November 2012, Israel launched Operation Pillar of Defense. The fighting lasted eight days, during which, according to B’Tselem figures, Israel killed 167 Palestinians, at least 87 of whom had not participated in the fighting. Of these, 32 were under the age of 18. Over the course of the fighting, four Israeli civilians and two members of the security forces were killed by rockets and shells that Palestinians fired from the Gaza Strip.

Operation Protective Edge: On 8 July 2014, Israel launched Operation Protective Edge. The fighting lasted 50 days, until 26 August 2014, with Israel wreaking havoc on Gaza’s civilian infrastructure. According to B’Tselem figures, during the fighting, Israel killed 2,203 Palestinians, including 1,371 who did not take part in the fighting. About a quarter of all the casualties, 548, were under age 18 and 527 of them did not take part in the fighting. During the fighting, Palestinians killed five Israeli civilians, including one child, as well as one foreign national and 63 soldiers. Three other soldiers were killed by friendly fire, and another was killed in an accident.

Guardian of the Walls: On 10 May 2021, Israel launched Operation Guardian of the Walls. The fighting lasted 11 days, until 21 May 2021, with Israel destroying buildings and civilian infrastructure. According to B’Tselem’s figures, during the fighting, Israel killed 232 Palestinians, including 137 who did not take part in the fighting, 53 of whom were under age 18. During the fighting, six Israeli civilians and three foreign nationals were killed by rockets that Palestinians fired. One member of the security forces was killed by Palestinian fire.

“No go” zones

Israel treats an area inside the Gaza Strip, near the border fence, as its own territory, using it to create a “buffer zone” inside the already narrow Strip. After the second intifada broke out, the military declared a vast area near the Gaza-Israel border, much of it farmland, off-limits to Palestinians. It never officially announced this policy or clarified to the residents which areas exactly were off limits to them, which increases the danger they face.

To enforce this access ban, the military has introduced open-fire regulations that permit firing at Palestinians found inside the zone – even if they pose no threat to anyone’s life. The implementation of these regulations has resulted in the killing of at least 87 Palestinians who did not take part in fighting from the time the Disengagement Plan was implemented in September 2005 until the end of May 2022, excluding rounds of fighting. Of these casualties, 41 were killed when they were in these zones as part of their daily routine, including local residents and farmers. Fourteen more people were killed when they approached the fence, planning to cross it in search of work inside Israel.

Another measure employed by the military to enforce the prohibition on approaching the fence is spraying herbicides on crops near the fence – on the Gazan side. The spraying is done without advance notice, and without alerting residents that they must protect crops that lie several hundred meters away from the fence, which are also harmed by the spraying. Israel has also destroyed vast areas near the border during the rounds of fighting, including demolishing entire neighbourhoods.

In the past, Gaza residents grew fruit trees and kept hothouses in these areas. Some were used for grazing livestock raised for food. However, because of Israel’s policy, and after the military destroyed various crops in the area, many farmers had to switch to crops that require less maintenance and that the army cannot claim block its field of vision. Today, the area is mostly home to dryland farming crops, which require no irrigation, such as wheat, barley, beans and various kinds of vegetables.

The Great March of Return protests

On 30 March 2018 – Land Day – Palestinians in the Gaza Strip began to hold regular protests along the perimeter fence, demanding an end to the blockade Israel has imposed on the Strip since 2007 and fulfillment of the right of return. The protests, held mostly on Fridays with tens of thousands participating, including children, women and seniors, continued until the end of 2019.

Israel was quick to frame the protests as illegitimate even before they began. It made various attempts to prevent the demonstrations and declared in advance it would violently disperse the protesters. The military deployed dozens of snipers along the fence, and various officials clarified that the open-fire regulations would permit lethal fire against anyone attempting to approach the fence or damage it. When Gaza residents went ahead with the demonstrations regardless, Israel made good on its threats and its open-fire regulations permitted use of live fire against unarmed protestors. As a result, 223 Palestinians, 46 of them under the age of 18, were killed and some 8,000 injured. The vast majority of the persons killed or injured were unarmed and posed no threat to the well-armored soldiers standing on the other side of the fence.

Israel responded to international criticism of the casualty toll by saying it would investigate the incidents. Yet today, more than forty months after the first demonstration, it is clear that the military’s investigations in relation to the Gaza protests were never intended to ensure justice for the victims or to deter troops from similar action. These investigations – much like the investigations conducted by the military law enforcement system in other cases in which soldiers have harmed Palestinians – are part of Israel’s whitewashing mechanism, and their main purpose remains to silence external criticism, so that Israel can continue to implement its policy unchanged.

EINDE BERICHT

”GENEVA, 14 June 2013 – The United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territories occupied by Israel since 1967, Richard Falk, called today on Israel to end its blockade over the Gaza Strip, six years after it was tightened following the Hamas takeover in June 2007”

UNITED NATIONS

COLLECTIVE PUNISHMENT IN GAZA MUST END:

ISRAEL’S BLOCKADE ENTERS IN IT’S 7TH YEAR-

UN SPECIAL RAPPORTEUR

14 JUNE 2013

https://www.ohchr.org/en/press-releases/2013/06/collective-punishment-gaza-must-end-israels-blockade-enters-its-7th-year-un

GENEVA, 14 June 2013 – The United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territories occupied by Israel since 1967, Richard Falk, called today on Israel to end its blockade over the Gaza Strip, six years after it was tightened following the Hamas takeover in June 2007. The human suffering of the land, sea and air blockade imposed on the 1.75 million Palestinians living in one of the most densely populated and impoverished areas of the world has been devastating.

“Six years of Israel’s calculated strangulation of the Gaza Strip has stunted the economy and has kept most Gazans in a state of perpetual poverty and aid dependency,” said the UN expert. “Whether it is fishermen unable to go beyond six nautical miles from the shore, farmers unable to access their land near the Israeli fence, businessmen suffering from severe restrictions on the export of goods, students denied access to education in the West Bank, or patients in need of urgent medical attention refused access to Palestinian hospitals in the West Bank, the destructive designs of blockade have been felt by every single household in Gaza. It is especially felt by Palestinian families separated by the blockade,” he added.

“The people of Gaza have endured the unendurable and suffered what is insufferable for six years. Israel’s collective punishment of the civilian population in Gaza must end today,” said the Special Rapporteur.

“Israel has the responsibility as the Occupying Power to protect the civilian population. But instead of allowing a healthy people and economy to flourish, Israeli authorities have sealed off the Gaza Strip. According to statistics released by the Israeli Ministry of Defense, last month’s exports out of Gaza consisted of 49 truckloads of empty boxes, three truckloads of spices, one truckload of cut flowers, and one truckload of furniture,” he said. In 2012, the total number of truckloads of exports leaving Gaza was 254, compared to 9,787 in 2005 before the tightening of the blockade.

“It does not take an economist to figure out that such a trickle of goods out of Gaza is not the basis of a viable economy,” noted the UN expert. “The easing of the blockade announced by Israel in June 2010 after its deadly assault on the flotilla of ships carrying aid to the besieged population resulted only in an increase in consumer goods entering Gaza, and has not improved living conditions for most Gazans. Since 2007, the productive capacity of Gaza has dwindled with 80 percent of factories in Gaza now closed or operating at half capacity or less due to the loss of export markets and prohibitively high operating costs as a result of the blockade. 34 percent of Gaza’s workforce is unemployed including up to half the youth population, 44 percent of Gazans are food insecure, 80 percent of Gazans are aid recipients,” he said.

“To make matters worse, 90 percent of the water from the Gaza aquifer is unsafe for human consumption without treatment, and severe fuel and electricity shortage results in outages of up to 12 hours a day. Only a small proportion of Gazans who can afford to obtain supplies through the tunnel economy are buffered from the full blow of the blockade, but tunnels alone cannot meet the daily needs of the population in Gaza.”

“Last year, the United Nations forecast that under existing conditions, Gaza would be uninhabitable by 2020. Less optimistic forecasts presented to me were that the Gaza Strip may no longer be viable only three years from now,” said the Special Rapporteur. “It’s clear that the Israeli authorities set out six years ago to devitalize the Gazan population and economy,” he said, referring to a study undertaken by the Israeli Ministry of Defense in early 2008 detailing the minimum number of calories Palestinians in Gaza need to consume on a daily basis to avoid malnutrition. The myriad of restrictions imposed by Israel do not permit civilians in Gaza to develop to their full potential, and enjoy and exercise fully their human rights.

ENDS

ENDS

In 2008, the UN Human Rights Council designated Richard Falk (United States of America) as the fifth Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights on Palestinian territories occupied since 1967. The mandate was originally established in 1993 by the UN Commission on Human Rights.

Learn more, log on to: http://www2.ohchr.org/english/countries/ps/mandate/index.htm

UN Human Rights – Occupied Palestinian Territories: http://www.ohchr.org/EN/countries/MENARegion/Pages/PSIndex.aspx

UN Human Rights – Israel: http://www.ohchr.org/EN/Countries/MENARegion/Pages/ILIndex.aspx

For more information and media requests, please contact Kevin Turner (kturner@ohchr.org) or Kiyohiko Hasegawa khasegawa@ohchr.org) or write to sropt@ohchr.org

For media inquiries related to other UN independent experts:
Cécile Pouilly, UN Human Rights – Media Unit (+ 41 22 917 9310 / cpouilly@ohchr.org)

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HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH

LETTER TO OLMERT: STOP THE BLOCKADE OF GAZA

20 NOVEMBER 2008

https://www.hrw.org/news/2008/11/20/letter-olmert-stop-blockade-gaza

November 20, 2008
Dear Prime Minister Olmert,
We are writing to express our deep concern about Israel’s continuing blockade of the Gaza Strip, a measure that is depriving its population of food, fuel, and basic services, and constitutes a form of collective punishment.

The latest measures, a complete closure of all Gaza border crossings since November 5, are part of an ongoing policy by your government that has prevented the normal flow of goods and people in and out of Gaza since January 2006. It has contributed to a humanitarian crisis, deepened poverty and ruined the economy. We urge your government to abandon this policy.

Your government states that this latest blockade was in response to Palestinian rocket attacks on Israel, in which two Israel civilians were injured (on November 14 and 16), and over a dozen others treated for shock. Human Rights Watch has repeatedly condemned deliberate and indiscriminate Palestinian rocket attacks on Israeli communities as violations of the laws of war. We recently sent a letter to Hamas leaders calling on them to renounce such attacks, and arrest and prosecute those who carry out or encourage attacks on civilians.

However, violations of the laws of war by one party to a conflict do not justify violations by the other. As such, illegal attacks by Palestinian armed groups do not justify an illegal Israeli response. Israel’s blockade of the Gaza Strip, an occupied territory under the Fourth Geneva Convention, constitutes collective punishment in violation of the laws of war.
While your government has eased the restrictions for one day on November 17 the humanitarian situation in Gaza is now critical as the borders remain closed. Food distribution by the United Nations to 750,000 people—half of Gaza’s population—was forced to a halt last week, and remains severely disrupted.

Israel permitted 30 trucks to enter Gaza on November 17, delivering just eight trucks of food aid for the United Nations relief agency distribution centers, enough to feed 20,000 people. Those supplies are now almost gone, according to UN officials. The agency has to import at least 15 truckloads of food daily to meet the territory’s needs. Food stocks in three UN warehouses have also been emptied.

Gaza’s main power station needs over 21 million liters of industrial diesel before it can restart power production, according to the relief agency. Gaza is currently suffering widespread power shortages with power cuts of up to 16 hours a day. On average 650,000 people–over a third of the population—are without power at any one time amid rolling power cuts throughout the territory.

The fuel and power shortages have disrupted the pumping of water from 80 percent of Gaza water wells according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). Twenty percent of the population has access to water for six hours five times a week. Forty percent have access to water four days a week, and the remaining 40 percent have water for just three days a week.

No wheat grain has entered Gaza for 16 days, prompting Gaza’s largest flour mill al-Philistiniya to close, according to OCHA. A lack of cooking gas has closed 28 out of 47 pita-bread bakeries in Gaza, and bread is being rationed. There are no bakeries in production in Rafah in the south of Gaza.

The latest closures have compounded the already severe effects of a longer term blockade your government implemented when Hamas took full control of Gaza in June 2007. Other restrictions have been in place since December 2005, when Hamas won legislative elections in the West Bank and Gaza. Over the last year, this policy has deepened poverty in Gaza and cut its industrial production by over 90 percent, according to the World Bank. The Palestinian Federation of Industries estimates that as a result of import restrictions and the inability to export, only 23 of the 3,900 industries in Gaza are operating, six of which produce wheat flour, one clothing, and the remainder food processing.

These restrictions are impacting a population that is already among the poorest in the world. Close to 70 percent of the population lives in deep poverty, according the UN relief agency, UNRWA. (The agency defines deep poverty as a family of six persons or more living on income of less than US$467 per month.) Egypt has been complicit in the blockade by keeping its borders with Gaza closed for much of the past year, in cooperation with your government.

Israel made a commitment in June to ease some of these restrictions – but the movement of goods into Gaza and people in and out the territory remains a fraction of what it was when borders were last opened for free trade. October’s imports represented only 21 percent of the December 2005 level (13,430 truckloads), that is prior to the Palestinian Legislative Council elections, and 26 percent of the May 2007 level, immediately before the Hamas takeover of the Gaza Strip, according to OCHA. Exports from Gaza are not allowed by your government.

In September and October, Egypt and Israel allowed around 6000 pilgrims, hospital patients and some businessmen to pass through the Rafah and Erez border crossings. However, the Israeli and Egyptian governments have prevented over 800 students from leaving the territory to study abroad. Restrictions on freedom of movement for the large majority of the population remain in place, preventing their access to work, healthcare, and family outside of Gaza.

Even though Israel withdrew its permanent military forces and settlers in 2005, it remains an occupying power in Gaza under international law because it continues to exercise effective day-to-day control over key aspects of life in Gaza. Under the Fourth Geneva Convention, Israel is obliged to ensure the provision of food and medical supplies to the civilian population to the fullest extent possible.

We urge your government to immediately lift restrictions on the flow into Gaza of food, medicines, and other supplies essential for the well-being of the civilian population and to cease all measures that amount to collective punishment of the civilian population, including disruptions to the electricity supply and fuel cuts. We also urge your government to respect the right to freedom of movement, especially for those who need to travel for reasons of health or education.

We look forward to your response to this matter.

Yours sincerely,

SarahLeah Whitson
Executive Director
Middle East and North Africa Division
Human Rights Watch

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GAZA IN EEN WURGGREEP

2014

Israël en Hamas vochten van 8 juli tot 26 augustus 2014 hun derde gewapende conflict in zes jaar tijd uit. Voor buitenstaanders is het onbegrijpelijk dat de moord op drie Israëlische tieners en een Palestijnse jongen kon ontaarden in een zoveelste zinloze oorlog. Tegen de achtergrond van de aanhoudende bezetting en Israëls blokkade van de Gazastrook komt deze nieuwe ronde van geweld echter niet als een verrassing. Maar ook het falende optreden van de VS en de EU, en de marginalisatie van het internationaal recht, zijn belangrijke pijnpunten.

HET RECHT VAN DE STERKSTE

Twintig jaar vredesgesprekken brachten het vooruitzicht op een Palestijnse staat niet dichterbij. In 1993 schaarden Israël en de Palestijnse Bevrijdingsorganisatie zich achter de Principeverklaring. Onder het motto ‘land voor vrede’ zou Israël zich geleidelijk aan terugtrekken uit de Palestijnse gebieden en een staat binnen de grenzen van vóór 1967 mogelijk maken. De Palestijnse Autoriteit (PA) werd opgericht om de proto-staat op te bouwen. Als leider van het diplomatieke proces stelde de Verenigde Staten zich voor als eerlijke bemiddelaar. Snel werd duidelijk dat de VS de kaart van Israël trok. Het vredesproces verzandde in een steriel proces. Er was een consensus over de bestemming – de tweestatenoplossing – al werd de weg erheen nooit uitgestippeld. Zo werden de Westoever en Gaza als een eenheid gedefinieerd en moesten ze via een brug of een tunnel verbonden worden. Israël vertikte dat en ontwikkelde een scheidingsbeleid.

Het Oslo-akkoord gaf de PA slechts beperkte territoriale controle over de Palestijnse gebieden. De struikelblokken zoals nederzettingen, grenzen, het statuut van Jeruzalem en water werden uitgesteld tot de finale statusonderhandelingen. Bovendien stelden de VS het internationaal recht als een obstakel voor, conform Israëls positie. Als bezettende macht heeft Israël duidelijke verplichtingen. Zo moet het instaan voor de veiligheid en het welzijn van de Palestijnse burgers en mag het zijn burgers niet overbrengen naar bezet gebied. In de gesprekken waren hier geen verwijzingen naar. In werkelijkheid zou Israël beslissen wat de Palestijnen krijgen.

Het vredesproces wekte de schijn dat Israël zijn bezetting zou opgeven, maar het behield de essentiële regeringsfuncties zoals controle over land, grenzen en het recht op residentie. Als een bezettende macht mag Israël de effectieve controle over de Palestijnse gebieden behouden, indien het zijn verplichtingen naleeft. Israël geniet echter de lusten maar niet de lasten van de bezetting. De PA heeft beperkte civiele bevoegdheden, maar geen vooruitzicht op soevereiniteit. Premier Netanyahu stelde in juli 2014 onomwonden dat hij nooit zal toestaan dat de PA soevereiniteit over de Westoever krijgt.

Het bewustzijn over de urgentie van de tweestatenoplossing groeit bij Europese diplomaten, ze waarschuwen dat de tijd tikt.1 Toch ondernemen de EU en de VS weinig om de situatie te veranderen. Van bij het begin van het vredesproces, zag de EU af van druk op Israël omdat dit de gesprekken zou ondermijnen. Europa hoopte dat Israël geleidelijk aan land zou opgeven. Tot op vandaag gelooft het dat de bilaterale relaties een gunstige impact op Israël zullen hebben. Door het proces van socialisering zal Israël zich conform internationale waarden gaan gedragen.

WEST BANK FIRST = GAZA LAST?

Door de meegaandheid van de VS en de EU kon Israël zijn expansiebeleid voortzetten. Het stelde dat een terugtrekking moet stroken met Israëls veiligheid. Onder het mom van veiligheid confisqueerden opeenvolgende regeringen Palestijns land en bouwden ze de nederzettingen uit. Anno 2014 wonen er meer dan 500.000 Israëlische kolonisten in 200 nederzettingen. De EU en de VS betreuren dit, maar treffen geen sancties. Israël bevindt zich in een ideale positie. Door zijn deelname aan vredesgesprekken toont het zich welwillend, het heeft een geprivilegieerd partnerschap met de EU en kan de bezetting handhaven. In plaats van zich geleidelijk terug te trekken, maakte Israël een lappendeken van de Westoever en sneed het Oost-Jeruzalem ervan af.

De afgelopen jaren waren de EU en de VS gefocust op de Westoever en de opbouw van staatsinstellingen, of liever de ineenstorting ervan. Beleidsmakers verzuchtten dat ze hun schaarse invloed moesten aanwenden om de nederzettingenbouw te beteugelen, laat staan dat ze de Palestijnse politieke en territoriale verdeeldheid ongedaan konden maken. Het motto was ‘West Bank first’. Bij de gesprekken die de VS in juli 2013 hadden opgestart, kwam Gaza nauwelijks aan bod. De gesprekken liepen in april vast wegens de nederzettingenbouw en Israëls weigering om Palestijnse gevangenen vrij te laten. Fatah en Hamas sloten een verzoeningsakkoord en kwamen overeen om een nationale consensusregering te vormen. Toen trok Israël de stekker definitief uit de gesprekken. Het wil immers niet dat er getornd wordt aan de isolatie van Gaza en doet er alles aan om eenheidsregering te voorkomen. Dit zou zijn verdeel-een-heersbeleid ondermijnen.

DE BESTRAFFING VAN GAZA

De isolatie van Gaza startte vóór de verkiezingsoverwinning van Hamas in 2006. Israël initieerde dit proces in 1991, met de bouw van een hek rond Gaza en het weren van Gazaanse arbeiders in Israël. Hiermee ving de on-ontwikkeling van Gaza aan, een ooit welvarend gebied werd economisch gewurgd en hulpafhankelijk gemaakt. Toen de Israëlische regering er in 2005 de nederzettingen ontmantelde, luidde dit geen ommekeer in. Voor Israël was de unilaterale terugtrekking een manier om zijn controle over de Westoever te behouden. Het wilde geen politieke en economische opportuniteiten creëren. Ook al trok Israël zijn soldaten terug, toch bleef het een bezettende macht door zijn controle over het luchtruim, de zee en de grensovergangen (met uitzondering van Rafah, met Egypte). Palestijnse gewapende groeperingen dreven hun raketaanvallen op en lokten hierdoor militaire operaties uit.

Toen Hamas in 2007 met geweld de macht greep in Gaza, en Fatah verjoeg, riep Israël het tot ‘vijandelijke entiteit’ uit en installeerde het de blokkade. De Israëlische regering legde beperkingen op aan commerciële import, verbood bijna alle export, en legde het verkeer van personen aan banden. Deze ‘economische oorlogsvoering’ moest de druk op Hamas vergroten. Maar vooral de bevolking werd getroffen.2 De VN bestempelde de afsluiting als een vorm van ‘collectieve bestraffing’ in strijd met Israëls verplichtingen als bezettende macht. Ondertussen versterkte Hamas zijn controle, onder meer via smokkeltunnels tussen Egypte en Rafah. Periodieke uitbarstingen van geweld waren de daaropvolgende jaren de regel.

Maar eind 2008 escaleerde het geweld en brak er een oorlog uit. Op 28 december lanceerde Israël ‘Gegoten Lood’ om de raketaanvallen te stoppen. Het leger voerde massale bombardementen uit en zette ook grondtroepen in. De Palestijnse gewapende groepen bleven echter tot op de laatste dag, 18 januari 2009, raketaanvallen op Israël uitvoeren. De balans van de oorlog was 1400 Palestijnse doden en 13 Israëlische doden. Israël had op grote schaal burgerinfrastructuur getroffen en ook de economie van Gaza in puin gelegd. Door Israëls afsluiting en het verbod op de invoer van onder meer bouwmateriaal werd de wederopbouw sterk bemoeilijkt.

November 2012 zag een nieuw gewapend conflict tussen Israël en Hamas. Na acht dagen kwamen beide partijen onder bemiddeling van Egypte overeen tot een staakt-het-vuren. Ze zouden de vijandelijkheden staken en de Israëlische regering zou de blokkade versoepelen. De eerste maanden na het conflict werden er geen raketten uit Gaza afgevuurd, maar deed het Israëlische leger wel regelmatig invallen in Gaza. Israël weet de rust aan zijn afschrikkingsbeleid en zelfbehoud van Hamas. Het stelde indirecte gesprekken over de implementatie van het staakt-het-vuren uit en verlichtte de blokkade niet. In de bufferzones, landbouwgebied aan de grens, werden boeren beschoten. De grensovergangen werden geregeld gesloten. Toch hield Hamas zich grotendeels aan het staakt-het-vuren. Het focuste op het heropbouwen van zijn arsenaal en de volgende ronde waarbij het de afsluiting met geweld zou proberen op te heffen.

Toen generaal Sisi in juli 2013 de macht in Egypte overnam en president Morsi afzette, zakte Gaza nog dieper weg. De Egyptische regering strafte Hamas, de bondgenoot van de Moslimbroeders, en vernielde het merendeel van de smokkeltunnels, waardoor Hamas een groot deel van zijn inkomsten verloor. Het verminderde ook de passage via Rafah, de enige poort naar de buitenwereld. Eind 2013 werd de situatie onhoudbaar: stroomonderbrekingen duurden 12 à 18 uur per dag, dieseltekort veroorzaakte enorme wachtrijen aan benzinestations, vuilnis stapelde zich op, de riolering begaf het, de watercrisis bereikte een dieptepunt.3

DE ONVERMIJDELIJKE VOLGENDE RONDE

De directe aanleiding tot de volgende ronde was de ontvoering en de moord op drie Israëlische jongeren bij de nederzetting Gush Etzion bij Hebron op 12 juni 2014. Toen hun lichamen op 30 juni werden teruggevonden, ontvoerden en doodden Israëlische extremisten een Palestijnse tiener. Hierop braken onlusten uit in Jeruzalem, de Negev en Galilea (waar veel Palestijnse burgers van Israël wonen). Israël legde de schuld bij Hamas en startte een grootschalige campagne van arrestaties en raids in de Westoever, ‘Brother’s Keeper’. Later kwam aan het licht dat de Israëlische veiligheidsdiensten snel na de ontvoering wisten dat de jongens dood waren. Ook kon Israël de directe betrokkenheid van het leiderschap van Hamas niet bewijzen. Israël maakte van de gelegenheid om een strafexpeditie tegen Hamas te starten en de eenheidsregering te ondermijnen. Dat was het einde van de periode van ‘rust’.

Als respons op de protesten startten andere Palestijnse gewapende groeperingen met raket- en mortieraanvallen op Israël. Hamas wou niet aan de zijlijn blijven staan en hervatte zijn raketaanvallen op 7 juli. Daags erna lanceerde Israël de operatie ‘Protective Edge’. Na tien dagen begon het leger ook met een grondoffensief. Oorspronkelijk was het doel de raketten te stoppen. Na een zware aanval via een tunnel stelde het leger zijn doel bij tot de vernieling van de tunnels. Verschillende pogingen om tot een staakt-het-vuren te komen strandden, voornamelijk omdat Hamas niet aanvaardde dat zijn eisen niet werden ingewilligd. Uiteindelijk werd op 26 augustus onder leiding van Egypte een staakt-het-vuren voor een maand afgesloten. Israël ging akkoord met de opening van Rafah en liet meer humanitaire hulp toe. Ondertussen vinden in Caïro gesprekken plaats over de heikele punten: de opening van de luchthaven, de haven en de vrijlating van gevangenen.

Het conflict maakte meer dan 2100 Palestijnse slachtoffers, waarvan 70% burgers. Aan Israëlische zijde werden er 6 burgers en 64 soldaten gedood. Opnieuw werden de burgers van Gaza het zwaarst getroffen. Moskeeën, scholen, ziekenhuizen en volledige buurten werden verwoest. Israël gebruikte massaal zware artillerie en vuurde meer dan 30.000 granaten af.4 Dat is een veelvoud van wat Israël in de oorlog van 2008-2009 afschoot. ‘Toen ik de beelden op de televisie zag, dacht ik ‘Gegoten Lood’ op steroïden’, stelt Yehuda Shaul van de Israëlische organisatie Breaking the Silence. Hij wijst erop dat artillerie geschikt is in klassieke, interstatelijke oorlogen. Maar in een dichtbevolkt gebied is het gebruik ervan bijzonder gevaarlijk. ‘Het is geen accuraat wapen. Het ontploft en doodt mensen in een straal van 50 meter en verwondt mensen in een straal van 100 meter. Bovendien vuur je ook nooitéén granaat, maar tien granatenaf om je doel te treffen. Het Israëlische leger kan niet stellen dat het alles deed om burgerslachtoffers te voorkomen’.5

WAT WIL ISRAËL BEREIKEN?

Israëls houding tegenover Hamas is dubbelzinnig. Enerzijds bestempelt het Hamas als een terroristische organisatie waar niet mee te onderhandelen valt. Anderzijds weet Israël dat het alternatief voor Hamas in Gaza niet zozeer Fatah is, dan wel nog radicalere salafistisch-jihadistische partijen. Bovendien onderhandelde Israël reeds met Hamas bij de gevangenenruil in 2011 en het staakt-het-vuren in 2012. Toch zal Israël nooit afstappen van zijn officiële discours. Sinds het losbarsten van de strijd tussen Fatah en Hamas in 2006 kant het zich tegen verzoening en ondermijnt het pogingen om tot eenheidsregering te komen.

Daarom koos de Israëlische regering voor de confrontatie. Toch schatte ze de situatie niet goed in. Ze had geen politiek doel, maar wilde veiligheid verkrijgen, en dit via luchtaanvallen. Israël wilde een grondoperatie vermijden, maar werd ertoe genoodzaakt door de aanvalstunnels van Hamas. Ook al stelde premier Netanyahu dat de operatie slaagde omdat Israël geen enkele eis van Hamas inwilligde, toch is ze geen strategisch succes.6 Hamas zaaide terreur in Israël en zette de blokkade op de agenda. De meeste Israëli’s steunden deze operatie omdat ze geen alternatief zien voor militair geweld tegen Hamas. De zelfmoordaanslagen sloegen diepe wonden en bevestigden de idee dat de Palestijnen geen kans zullen laten liggen om ‘Israël in de zee te drijven.’ Ook de raketaanvallen stuitten op veel onbegrip. ‘We trokken ons terug uit Gaza en kregen raketten als cadeau’, is een veelgehoorde verzuchting.

Het veiligheidsdenken domineert de Israëlische maatschappij. Sociologe Eva Illouz ziet de humanitaire gevoeligheid met de jaren afnemen. Palestijnen worden geweerd, wat dehumanisering in de hand werkt. Bovendien staat angst centraal in de Israëlische pysche. De angst voor de Shoah, het antisemitisme, enzovoort creëert een ‘catastrofalistisch’ denken, waarbij wordt uitgegaan van het worst case scenario. Dat maakt het makkelijker om morele normen te overschrijden.7 De onverschilligheid van veel Israëli’s voor politiek, geeft de regering ook het vrijgeleide om haar beleid voort te zetten. Slechts weinig burgers leggen de link tussen de stijgende inkomenskloof en de hoge uitgaven voor defensie en de nederzettingen.

WAT WIL HAMAS BEREIKEN?

Hamas stond vlak voor het recente conflict erg zwak. Het was de steun van Egypte en ook van Syrië, door zijn stellingname tegenover het regime, verloren. In Gaza zelf boette Hamas aan invloed in ten nadele van de Islamitische Jihad en andere salafistisch-jihadistische groepen. Hamas had het staakt-het-vuren met Israël afgedwongen maar plukte er geen vruchten van. Het gevoel groeide binnen Hamas dat het niet zoveel zou verliezen bij een conflict met Israël.8 Het zou zijn populariteit opkrikken en Israël mogelijk kunnen dwingen de blokkade te verlichten.

De noodgedwongen verzoening met Fatah had ook niet veel opgeleverd. Hamas had de voorwaarden van Fatah aanvaard. Het zou het bestuur van Gaza overdragen aan functionarissen die Fatah zou aanstellen en de grensovergangen zouden door de veiligheidsdiensten van de PA worden bemand. De eenheidsregering die in juni was gevormd, omvatte geen lid van Hamas en aanvaardde de drie voorwaarden van het Kwartet (opgeven van geweld, respect voor de vorige akkoorden en aanvaarding van Israël). De voorwaarden van Hamas werden echter niet vervuld: de opening van de overgang met Egypte en de betaling van 45.000 ambtenaren, waar Israël zich tegen kantte.

De ontwikkelingen na de moord op de Israëlische tieners zetten Hamas tot militaire actie aan. Het zag dit als een gevecht om zijn voortbestaan. Ofwel onderging Hamas Israëls langzame verstikking ofwel initieerde het een oorlog die kon leiden tot de opheffing van de blokkade.9 Hamas had zich voorbereid op deze ronde en beschouwde zichzelf naderhand als overwinnaar. Het is niet opgewassen tegen het vierde machtigste leger ter wereld, maar kan Israël pijn doen. Door de aanvalstunnels gingen strijders voor het eerst in decennia de grens over, het legde de luchthaven van Ben Goerion twee dagen plat en vuurde raketten af op alle grote steden.

Toch behaalde Hamas geen overwinning. Het ging akkoord met een staakt-het-vuren waarbij zijn voornaamste eisen zoals de opening van de luchthaven, de haven en de vrijlating van de gevangenen niet werden ingewilligd. Na Israëls uitschakeling van enkele militaire leiders zag het geen voordeel meer in de voortzetting van de strijd.10 Hamas slaagde er wel in om de blokkade op de politieke agenda te zetten. De EU en zelfs de VS erkennen dat een terugkeer tot de status quo ante onmogelijk is.

DE INTERNATIONALE GEMEENSCHAP MEET OPNIEUW MET TWEE MATEN

De VS en de Europese lidstaten riepen Israël geen halt toe en verklaarden dat Israël het recht op zelfverdediging heeft. Ze veroordeelden zijn schendingen van het internationaal humanitair recht in algemene termen. Minister Reynders stelde dat Israël en Hamas niet vergeleken kunnen worden, dat Hamas een terreurbeweging is terwijl Israël het recht en de plicht heeft om zijn bevolking te verdedigen. In de Commissie Buitenlandse Zaken ging hij nog een stap verder. ‘Het respect voor het internationaal recht, in het bijzonder het internationaal humanitair recht, is een verantwoordelijkheid van alle betrokken partijen. Dit geldt voor Israël maar ook voor andere organisaties die als terroristisch worden bestempeld. We constateren echter dat burgers geregeld als menselijke schilden worden gebruikt om militaire doelwitten te beschermen. Het leiderschap van Hamas bouwt ook bunkers onder hospitalen. Gisteren veroordeelde UNRWA dat Hamas raketten in scholen opslaat’.11

Hiermee neemt minister Reynders de retoriek van Israël over. Het voorbeeld van de menselijke schilden is problematisch omdat dit het steeds wederkerende excuus van Israël voor de vele burgerslachtoffers overneemt. En dat terwijl de VN-onderzoekscommissie na de oorlog van 2008-09 (waarin dezelfde beschuldiging werd geuit) geen aanwijzingen vond voor het gebruik van menselijke schilden door Palestijnse groepen.12 Het internationaal humanitair recht verbiedt oorlogvoering in stedelijk gebied niet. Dat kan niet gelijkgesteld worden aan het gebruik van menselijke schilden, zoals Israël doet. Het concept ‘menselijk schild’ veronderstelt dat strijders bewust de aanwezigheid van burgers gebruiken om zichzelf of andere militaire doelwitten tegen vijandelijke aanvallen te beschermen. Minister Reynders vergeet dat talloze Palestijnse burgers omkwamen bij aanvallen waar een legitiem militair doelwit afwezig was (bijvoorbeeld woningen van Hamas-leden) of die in een onaanvaardbare hoge ‘collateral damage’ resulteerden en disproportioneel waren. De Israëlische mensenrechtenorganisatie B’Tselem stelde vast dat honderden Palestijnse burgers in hun woning gedood werden.13 Met het zogenaamde gebruik van menselijke schilden door Hamas heeft dat weinig te maken.

Ook is het problematisch dat Hamas verengd wordt tot een terreurbeweging. Dat is een vrijbrief voor Israël om Hamas met alle middelen uit te schakelen. Dat is in tegenspraak met minister Reynders’ oproepen tot een wapenstilstand en zijn voorkeur voor een onderhandelde oplossing. Ondanks zijn onvoorzichtige taalgebruik lijkt hij te beseffen dat Hamas méér is dan een terreurorganisatie en dat een politieke oplossing de enig mogelijke is.

Net als de EU stelde België dat een terugkeer naar het status quo van vóór het recente conflict onaanvaardbaar is. Indien de EU een ommekeer wil , moet ze aandringen op Israëls respect voor het internationaal humanitair recht, zoals ze dit ook terecht verwacht en eist van Hamas. Dat is enige manier om het klimaat van wetteloosheid te stoppen en een echt vredesproces mogelijk te maken. Eerst en vooral moet ze Israël onder druk zetten om de blokkade daadwerkelijk op te heffen, en niet enkel de humanitaire hulp toe te laten. Israël zal zich immers verzetten tegen de wederopbouw van Gaza, de heropleving van de economie en de verbinding tussen de Westoever en Gaza. Toch moeten Europese beleidsmakers alles inzetten op ‘Gaza first’ en het plan van president Abbas om Gaza prioriteit te geven in het vredesproces.

Brigitte Herremans
Medewerker Midden Oosten bij Pax Christi en Broederlijk Delen

Noot
1/ EU Heads of Mission Jerusalem Report 2012, gelekt rapport, http://972mag.com/resource-eu-heads-of-mission-report-on-israeli-settlements/66814/.
2/ Rapporten van de Israëlische mensenrechtenorganisatie Gisha.
3/ Thrall N., Hamas’s Chances, London Review of Books, 21 augustus 2014.
4/ Harel A., Massive artillery shelling may have caused numerous civilian fatalities in Gaza, Ha’aretz, 15 augustus 2014.
5/ Gesprek met Yehuda Shaul, 3 september 2014.
6/ Sharon A., Failure in Gaza, New York Review of Books, 3 september 2014.
7/ Heyer J.A., Interview with Eva Illouz, Gaza Crisis: The Real Danger comes from Within, http://www.spiegel.de/international/world/interview-with-sociologist-eva-illouz-about-gaza-and-israeli-society-a-984536.html, 5 augustus 2014.
8/ International Crisis Group, The Next Round in Gaza, rapport 149, 15 maart 2014.
9/ Thrall N., Hamas’s Chances, London Review of Books, 21 augustus 2014.
10/ Harel A., Real Test for Gaza Truce still lies ahead, 27 augustus 2014.
11/ Minister Reynders, interventie in de Commissie Buitenlandse Zaken van de Kamer, http://www.dekamer.be/doc/CCRI/pdf/54/ic002.pdf, p. 15, 28 juli 2014.
12/ Human Rights Council, Report of the UN- Fact Finding Mission on the Gaza Conflict, A/HRC/12/48, http://www2.ohchr.org/english/bodies/hrcouncil/docs/12session/A-HRC-12-48.pdf, 25 september 2009.
13/ B’tselem, Families Bombed at Home, http://www.btselem.org/gaza\_strip/201407\_families, juli-augustus 2014.

EINDE

ZIE OOK WEBSITE ASTRID ESSED OVER GAZA

[BLADER DEZE GOED DOOR,

VOOR ISRAELISCHE AANVALLEN OP GAZA EEN AANTAL JAREN GELEDEN]