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The Israeli-Palestinian Conflict

Holding International Leaders Accountable for International Law Violations

Published February 24 2025

Analysis by Markus Rutledge


As the conflict in Israel and the Palestinian territories continues, many voices have called Israel’s occupation of the West Bank and its ongoing attacks on Gaza illegal. Although fighting escalated  in the Arab-Israeli War of 1948 when Arab armies assaulted  a newly established Israel, the conflict has steadily been gaining more attention as Israeli settlers move into the West Bank and the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) escalate their attacks in Palestine (1). Israel’s airstrikes in Gaza intensified greatly after Hamas killed 1200 Israeli civilians and took over 250 hostage on October 7, 2023 (2). During this rampage, Hamas intentionally murdered defenseless and fleeing civilians, often using methods that amount to crimes against humanity, such as suffocation and burning (3).


In retaliation, the IDF rapidly increased its airstrikes, as well as its ground military operations, throughout Palestine. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to eliminate Hamas and prevent the loss of more Israeli lives. However, activists and politicians worldwide have condemned Prime Minister Netanyahu for refusing to call off Israel’s attacks despite the destruction of civilian infrastructure, spread of disease and famine, and significant loss of civilian life. Since Hamas’s October 7 attack, more than 40,000 Palestinians have been killed, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health, and about 60% of Gaza’s infrastructure has been destroyed, including 89% and 85% of hospitals and schools, respectively (4) (5). In light of this widespread destruction of property, there has been an outcry over what seems to be the deliberate targeting of civilian infrastructure. While unarmed Palestinian families seek shelter in partially destroyed schools and apartments, the IDF has conducted raids and airstrikes on these buildings as well (6).


In response to these events, activists across the world have labeled Hamas and Israeli leaders as war criminals under international law, and have called for their conviction in the International Criminal Court (ICC). ICC Prosecutor Karim Khan conveyed his agreement in a statement he made on May 20, 2024, announcing that he would be filing applications for arrest warrants for three Hamas leaders. According to Khan, they were responsible for committing murder, taking hostages, and engaging in sexual violence, among other war crimes and crimes against humanity. However, Khan also expressed his belief that Prime Minister Netanyahu and the Israeli Minister of Defense Yoav Gallant committed war crimes and crimes against humanity, including using starvation of civilians as warfare, causing great physical or mental harm, intentionally targeting a civilian population, persecuting an ethnic group, and engaging in cruel treatment and inhumane acts (7).


Prosecutor Khan’s statement communicates that no leader of any organization should be above the law. This is especially true when innocent civilians are being caught in the crossfire or are being targeted deliberately. Accordingly, the leaders who are complicit in these events should be held accountable. However, this is easier said than done. Hamas, being a militant group, seems highly unlikely to comply with international law or follow legal proceedings. Although every attempt should be made to prosecute its leaders in a courtroom, holding them accountable through the law would be extremely difficult. However, the same cannot be said for Prime Minister Netanyahu and Defense Minister Gallant. As the official leaders of a state which holds membership in the United Nations High Commissioner and the World Health Organization, they must be held accountable for their actions (8) (9). If high-profile public figures such as Prime Minister Netanyahu are not held responsible, the international legal system may lose credibility and other leaders could engage in similar actions with the belief that they can act with impunity.


On November 21, 2024, the ICC issued arrest warrants for all of the Israeli and Palestinian officials implicated in Prosecutor Khan’s application (10) (11). There has been much backlash regarding Netanyahu’s arrest warrant, with some outright denying the war crimes and crimes against humanity charges, asserting Israel’s right to defend itself. Others claim that the ICC has no jurisdiction over the actions of state leaders. However, Article 5 of the ICC’s founding treaty, the Rome Statute, definitively states that crimes against humanity and war crimes are within the jurisdiction of the court (12). Given that the Rome Statute was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly, which Israel holds membership in, the international community should hold Israeli leaders to these legal standards (13).


Recent cases provide a justification for holding military officers, government leaders,  and  nations all accountable for violations of international law. One example includes the United Nations International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda, which was held from 1995-2015. After a months-long massacre of 800,000 Rwandans, most of whom were Tutsis, the former Rwandan Prime Minister plead guilty to genocide and was sentenced to life imprisonment in The Prosecutor v. Jean Kambanda (14) (15). Similarly,  the International Court of Justice (the U.N.’s main judicial body and the organization that deals with disputes between states) ruled in Nicaragua v. U.S. that the United States had violated international law by supporting the Contras’ rebellion against Sandinistas by mining Nicaraguan harbors. Despite the court’s ruling, the U.S. refused to participate in the hearings and blocked the U.N. Security Council from enforcing the judgement (16).


The U.S.’s reaction to the decision reveals the importance of cooperation in the enforcement of international law. Though the ICC did issue arrest warrants against the leaders of Israel and Hamas, arresting and indicting them is much more difficult. Leaders can exploit loopholes by staying within their own country, where local officials are unlikely to enforce international law and arrest them; or, they may simply evade arrest by eluding law enforcement. Because of the lack of resources and manpower that countries contribute to international law enforcement, this evasion is more effective than it needs to be. Former Sudanese President Omar Al-Bashir, for example, has avoided prosecution by the ICC because he simply has not been captured (17).


Hamas and Israel’s attacks on civilians in Israel and the Palestinian territories have continued because the international community has failed to properly enforce the consequences of committing such crimes. Israel, in particular, has had the backing of many major figures in powerful nations like the United States. Even President Biden and Secretary of State Antony Blinken have criticized Prosecutor Khan’s applications for arrest warrants (18). As a result, Israel has continued to engage in actions that, according to the ICC, classify as war crimes and crimes against humanity under international law.


After nearly 80 years of conflict in Palestine, many parts of Gaza and other surrounding areas have been reduced to rubble and innocent Palestinians have experienced many horrible atrocities. Israelis have also been scarred by the experience of terrorism. All of the death and destruction surrounding the conflict, however, is unnecessary; it could be mitigated, if not ended, by holding leaders accountable for their actions. No matter where someone is or what position in society they have, the global community must hold them up to the standards of humanity that will allow for progress into a more peaceful future.


  1.  Office of the Historian, Foreign Service Institute. n.d. Accessed November 9, 2024. https://history.state.gov/milestones/1945-1952/arab-israeli-war#:~:text=After%20Israel%20declared%20its%20independence,in%20the%20former%20Palestinian%20mandate.

  2.  “Israel Gaza war: History of the conflict explained.” 2024. April 5, 2024. https://www.bbc.com/news/newsbeat-44124396.

  3.  “October 7 Crimes Against Humanity, War Crimes by Hamas-led Groups.” 2024. Human Rights Watch. https://www.hrw.org/news/2024/07/17/october-7-crimes-against-humanity-war-crimes-hamas-led-groups.

  4.  Al-Mughrabi, Nidal, Clauda Tanios, and Mark Heinrich. 2024. “41788 Palestinians killed in Gaza offensive since Oct. 7, health ministry says.” Reuters. https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/41788-palestinians-killed-gaza-offensive-since-oct-7-health-ministry-says-2024-10-03/.

  5.  Scher, Corey. 2024. “Flattened in a year: How Israeli bombardment reduced most of Gaza to rubble.” CNN, October 8, 2024. https://www.cnn.com/interactive/2024/10/world/gaza-homes-destroyed-war-one-year-dg/.

  6.  Scher, Corey. 2024. “Flattened in a year: How Israeli bombardment reduced most of Gaza to rubble.” CNN, October 8, 2024. https://www.cnn.com/interactive/2024/10/world/gaza-homes-destroyed-war-one-year-dg/.

  7.  International Criminal Court. 2024. “Statement of ICC Prosecutor Karim A.A. Khan KC: Applications for arrest warrants in the situation in the State of Palestine.” May 20, 2024. https://www.icc-cpi.int/news/statement-icc-prosecutor-karim-aa-khan-kc-applications-arrest-warrants-situation-state.

  8.  Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. n.d. “Israel.” Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. Accessed December 17, 2024. https://www.ohchr.org/en/countries/israel.

  9.  “Israel - World Health Organization.” 2023. World Health Organization (WHO). https://www.who.int/countries/isr/.

  10.  “Situation in the State of Palestine: ICC Pre-Trial Chamber I rejects the State of Israel's challenges to jurisdiction and issues warrants of arrest for Benjamin Netanyahu and Yoav Gallant.” 2024. | International Criminal Court. https://www.icc-cpi.int/news/situation-state-palestine-icc-pre-trial-chamber-i-rejects-state-israels-challenges.

  11.  “Situation in the State of Palestine: ICC Pre-Trial Chamber I issues warrant of arrest for Mohammed Diab Ibrahim Al-Masri (Deif).” 2024. | International Criminal Court. https://www.icc-cpi.int/news/situation-state-palestine-icc-pre-trial-chamber-i-issues-warrant-arrest-mohammed-diab-ibrahim.

  12.  Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court. 2021. N.p.: International Criminal Court.

  13.  Maizland, Lindsay, and Irina A. Faskianos. n.d. “The Role of the ICC.” Council on Foreign Relations. Accessed November 10, 2024. https://www.cfr.org/backgrounder/role-icc.

  14.  “Rwanda genocide of 1994 | Summary, History, Date, Background, Deaths, & Facts.” 2024. Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/event/Rwanda-genocide-of-1994.

  15.  “KAMBANDA, Jean (ICTR-97-23).” n.d. International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda. Accessed November 10, 2024. https://unictr.irmct.org/en/cases/ictr-97-23.

  16.  “Nicaragua v. United States.” n.d. Accessed November 10, 2024. https://www.icj-cij.org/case/70/judgments.

  17.  “Al Bashir | International Criminal Court.” n.d. | International Criminal Court. Accessed November 10, 2024. https://www.icc-cpi.int/darfur/albashir.

  18. Zvobgo, Kelebogile. 2024. “Will the ICC issue arrest warrants for Netanyahu and Sinwar?” September 9, 2024. https://www.brookings.edu/articles/will-the-icc-issue-arrest-warrants-for-netanyahu-and-sinwar/.

 


 
 
 

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