You want to accuse Israel of war crimes?

Let's look at that shall we?

Of the endless flurry of ridiculous, scurrilous and disparaging allegations and buzz words thrown at Israel, especially since October 7, accusing them of war crimes has to be one of the most laughable. Well it would be laughable if it wasn’t for the fact that the ramifications for the existential threat to Israel, and the safety and security of Jews the world over is no laughing matter.

So let’s talk about war crimes. On October 6 there was a ceasefire in place between Israel and ‘Palestine’. An estimated 6000 Palestinians broke the ceasefire when they invaded the borders of Southern Israel and indiscriminately slaughtered, raped and looted as many Jews and Israeli households as they could find, which is a serious violation of International War. The final death toll from the attack (taking out security forces) was 695 Israeli civilians, including 36 children and 71 foreigners—every one which constituted a war crime. Taking hostages is also a war crime, so that’s 250 war crimes just there. Killing those hostages while in captivity is, you guessed it, a war crime—what do you call a war crime on a war crime, a double war crime, a war crime squared? Raping women and using sexual violence against women or men is, at the risk of repeating myself, a war crime.¹ It is estimated that of the estimated 100 hostages remaining in captivity, only a third are thought to still be alive. And Hamas have now made it crystal clear by the executions of Israeli-American Hersh Goldberg-Polin, 23; Ori Danino, 25; Eden Yerushalmi, 24; Almog Sarusi, 27; Alexander Lobanov, 33; and Carmel Gat, 40, that it’s unlikely that all, if any, will make it home alive.

If you haven’t yet, I urge you to watch ‘Screams before Silence’ , a documentary film led by Sheryl Sandberg, that explores the sexual violence by Hamas during the ‘Palestinian’ attack on Israel, on 7 October, including events at the massacre at the Nova Festival and abductions to the Gaza Strip.

It is also a war crime to use civilians to inhibit or discourage attacks on military personnel, combatants or particular areas by placing the civilians in or near those locations. This has been a tactic used by Islamic regimes in urban warfare, and the preferred tactic of Hamas for years—you could say they are the foremost authority on this type of war crime. Which is exactly why under Al-Shifa hospital² the IDF uncovered stored weapons, underground bunkers, living quarters, and a room that appeared to be wired for computers and communications equipment as well as a maintained hardened tunnel beneath the complex that was supplied with water, power, and air-conditioning. Using civilians, like those in a hospital, as human shields for combatants is—drum roll—a war crime. Hamas have repeatedly hidden supplies, RPGs and terror tunnels as well as launched rockets from schools, humanitarian areas and hospitals—all war crimes, and by the way. According to the Laws of War³, a building ceases to be a hospital when it is used as a base to launch rockets. Under these circumstances, a building is transformed from “hospital” to “legitimate military target.” The distinctive emblem designating non-combatant status is the red cross, the reverse colors of the Swiss flag; launching only one rocket from the hospital parking lot is enough to change the meaning of a red cross on that building from “hospital” to “bullseye.”  

Arms found under the Al-Shifa hospital by the IDF

So let’s discuss humanitarian aid. Stealing humanitarian aid is absolutely considered a war crime, however the definition has never had to consider the absurd notion that the citizens own government would be the ones to steal the aid – or would be ripping up water systems to make bombs. Congratulations Hamas, your evil has even stumped the brains trust of the Geneva Convention⁴. It is prohibited to intentionally starve citizens as a method of warfare by depriving them of objects indispensable to their survival, including wilfully impeding relief supplies which contravenes article 8 of the Rome Statute of the ICC⁵. So considering the food delivered through crossings provided for a mean of 3,163 calories per person per day in Gaza⁶, there definitely seems like some wilful impeding going on.

Really we could go on an on, but what the keffiyeh wearing protesting gangs fail to understand, either due to a lack of education, or more likely I suspect a thinly veiled excuse for antisemitism, is that if you start a war, people will die. War is horrible, ugly, sad and the rest. But there are rules that a civilised society play by for the sake of our collective humanity. Hamas and their Islamic Brotherhood mates do not play nicely. When you start a war by the barbaric slaughter, rape and mutilation of hundreds of civilians, you don’t get to play the victim when you start to lose. There will always be rogue events that occur during the horrors of war that will constitute individual war crimes, and I’m sure that will be the case with the IDF, but here is the difference – when crimes are committed by soldiers of the IDF, the US Army, the Australian Army or other Armies in civilised societies, there is a legal process of accountability and consequence. Hamas and their like have no such scruples. Instead of being held accountable for war crimes, the jihadist rapists and murders from October 7 were lauded and celebrated by Hamas and Palestinians alike.

I still find it shocking that so many people are unable to clearly distinguish the boundary between collateral damage in a necessary war and sadistic genocidal jihadists intent that was celebrated with cheers and sweets. But here we are.

I’m coming to realise that the hurtful inversions that are spewed at Israel with such vitriol and venom—words like war crimes, terrorists, ethnostate, apartheid, one solution, Nazis and genocide—are not accidental. They are intended to be hurtful in the most traumatic way. They are designed to sting and to cut deep—its a purposeful stab in the heart to Jews. And I am finally beginning to understand that these words say much more about the morality of the individual chanting them than they ever did about Israel.

1. https://www.hrw.org/report/2024/07/17/i-cant-erase-all-blood-my-mind/palestinian-armed-groups-october-7-assault-israel

2. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/nov/16/idf-says-hamas-hiding-evidence-of-use-of-shifa-hospital-as-command-centre

3. https://www.amnesty.org/en/what-we-do/armed-conflict/#whatarethelawsofwar?

4. https://www.icrc.org/en/geneva-conventions-and-law

5. https://www.icc-cpi.int/sites/default/files/2024-05/Rome-Statute-eng.pdf

6. https://biochem-food-nutrition.agri.huji.ac.il/arontroen/publications/nutritional-assessment-of-food-aid-delivered-to-gaza