The Biggest Threats to the International Human Rights System.
“People inspect the site where World Central Kitchen workers were killed in Deir al-Balah, Gaza Strip, on 2 April.” Photograph: Abdel Kareem Hana/AP
It’s nearing 7 months of Israel bombardment of Gaza. With UN and Gaza Health Ministry reporting over 30,000 deaths and 70,000 injuries in the Gaza Strip, as well as the World Health Organization warning that famine is imminent, it is as important now than ever to keep the spotlight on Palestine and commit to effective action that will save civilians. Let me be clear, this has become a major threat to the international human rights system, in a number of devastating ways. Not only has the last 7 months seen the failure of the international community to step in for humanity and human rights, but those states and organization who have stepped forward have been ignored. When South Africa brought Israel to the International Court of Justice on the 29th of December, 2023, for many it was a spark of hope in despairing times. Nearly a month later, on the 26th of January, the ICJ reported its ruling with the world watching. I wrote live updates from the trial which you can find here, but to briefly summarize:
The ICJ ruled
The ICJ has jurisdiction over the case of genocide against Israel.
Palestinians are a protected group under the Genocide Convention.
Most importantly, there is reasonable claim that a genocide could occur in Gaza if Israel continues its operation as they have been.
Israel must take effective measures to prevent the crime of genocide and take immediate measures to ensure the passage and delivery of humanitarian aid into Gaza, as well as protect evidence of all such claims of genocide.
So has this happened? A resounding no.
In fact the following has occurred since this ruling:
March 5th, 2024: The Flour Massacre:
An obvious and overt war crime, as reported and verified by the United Nations: “UN experts today condemned the violence unleashed by Israeli forces, which killed at least 112 people gathered to collect flour in Gaza last week, as a “massacre” amid conditions of inevitable starvation and destruction of the local food production system in the besieged Palestinian enclave.”
April 1st, 2024: International Humanitarian Aid Group World Central Kitchen Attack by IDF.
Another obvious and overt war crime, as reported and verified by the World Central Kitchen, as well as multiple nations grieving the loss of the humanitarian heroes who lost their life trying to deliver life-saving food, water, medicine, and supplies.
The WCK reported, “World Central Kitchen is devastated to confirm seven members of our team have been killed in an IDF strike in Gaza.
The WCK team was traveling in a deconflicted zone in two armored cars branded with the WCK logo and a soft skin vehicle.
Despite coordinating movements with the IDF, the convoy was hit as it was leaving the Deir al-Balah warehouse, where the team had unloaded more than 100 tons of humanitarian food aid brought to Gaza on the maritime route.
“This is not only an attack against WCK, this is an attack on humanitarian organizations showing up in the most dire of situations where food is being used as a weapon of war. This is unforgivable,” said World Central Kitchen CEO Erin Gore. The seven killed are from Australia, Poland, United Kingdom, a dual citizen of the U.S. and Canada, and Palestine.”
March Al-Shifa Hospital Siege: (Previous siege in November and of other hospitals have occurred).
The World Health Organization conducted a field operation after the siege on Al-Shifa to report on the extent of damages, in partnership with OCHA and the UN. They found, “Like the majority of the north, Al-Shifa Hospital – once the largest and most important referral hospital in Gaza – is now an empty shell after the latest siege. No patients remain at the facility. Most of the buildings are extensively damaged or destroyed and the majority of equipment is unusable or reduced to ashes. The WHO team said that the scale of devastation has left the facility completely non-functional, further reducing access to life-saving health care in Gaza.”
OHCHR reported on the siege, “We are appalled by the massacre of civilians by Israeli forces in the Gaza Strip. The world is witnessing the first genocide shown in real time to the world by its victims and unfathomably justified by Israel as compliant with the laws of war.
In the wake of the two-week siege and destruction of Al-Shifa Hospital, in which health workers and patients were among those reportedly killed, we urge UN Member States to implement all possible diplomatic, political and economic measures, and legal processes, to stop this horror. The extent of the atrocity is still unable to be fully documented due to its scale and gravity – and clearly represents the most horrific assault on Gaza’s hospitals.
The besieging and destruction of a hospital and the killing of health workers, the sick and wounded, and the people who protect them, is prohibited by international law. Allowing this violence to take place has sent a clear message to the world and the international community that the people of Gaza do not have the right to health and critical determinants of health adequate for their existence.”
These are just three recent examples of countless war crimes that Israel has committed under the guise of “fighting terrorism.”
In my last blog post titled, “An Eye for an Eye Will Leave the Entire World Blind: Human Rights in the International War on Terror,” which you can find here, I argued that the international war on terror has become a disguise for state terrorists to legitimize and justify their actions in the international community. I used the example of the US in Afghanistan, but the bigger and more dangerous example is happening now in Gaza.
With Israel claiming that they are fighting Hamas terrorists, it has become a catch-all excuse they’ve used to weasel themselves out of taking responsibility for their human rights violations.
Of course, terrorism is still a legitimate threat, and terrorists who plan, incite, or commit human rights abuses should be held accountable and justice should always be served. However, when speaking about terrorism in the international community, it is rare that state terrorism is acknowledged and credited as a threat, and certainly not to the level that non-state terrorism is credited.
My argument is simple: states fighting terrorism is never an acceptable excuse to commit terrorist acts themselves. Even in war, which I do not believe Gaza constitutes a war (more of an ethnic cleansing and genocide), taking that dialogue - if you want to believe this is a war on terror, it still does not excuse the mass killings of civilians trying to retrieve humanitarian aid. It does not excuse the targeting of humanitarian aid workers attempting to deliver aid, nor does it excuse the negligence if you believe it wasn’t a targeted attack. It doesn’t excuse the deliberate targeting of hospitals. Regardless of claims that Hamas is operating underneath these buildings, there are other, more appropriate ways to investigate those claims and operate safely for civilians in “war zones.” Lastly, it doesn’t excuse the mass killing of children, unarmed civilians, aid workers, doctors, and other protected groups.
Israel will claim Hamas is using these protected people as “human shields,” but that still does not excuse their response. States have a certain responsibility, that other non-state actors (such as terrorists) are not obliged to, that is protecting civilians. If Israel wants the right to “fight terrorism,” they need to assume the responsibility.
It is my belief that Israel doesn’t really care about terrorism, or Hamas. There are simply other ways to engage in counter-terrorism that does not inadvertently commit a genocide. Yet the ICJ’s ruling was clear, there was plausible evidence Israel was and would commit genocide if their actions were continued, and they continued.
So what is the biggest threat to the international human rights system?
I don’t believe the answer is Israel, despite being a terrorist state who has proven their intention of ethnic cleansing and committing genocide against the Palestinians. I believe the biggest threat is what Israel represents, and how the international community has responded to this crisis. It’s important to note though, that Palestinians should not be reduced to another tragedy. They are still resisting for their right to live. However, what is happening in Gaza serves as a warning to the international human rights system. Here are a few reasons:
Acting with Total Impunity. In any other court room in the world, if one broke the provisions of their release, they would be jailed immediately and held accountable. Israel has blatantly ignored the ICJ and nothing has changed. Additionally, on March 25th, the UN Security Council passed a resolution calling for a ceasefire and the administration of humanitarian aid, as well as the release of hostages taken by Hamas. The following day, on March 26th, Israel withdrew from negotiations with Hamas and broke the ceasefire resolution with reports of “at least 12 Palestinians including children killed in an air raid that hit a tent full of displaced people in al-Mawasi, near Khan Younis in southern Gaza,” as well as Israeli tanks surrounding Nasser Hospital in Gaza and raids in Jenin, in the West Bank. This, again, leads me to believe that Israel does not care about the hostages or Hamas, at least not as much as they do about destroying Palestine. This sets a dangerous precedent, one with no regard for human rights or the international system set in place to protect them.
The Future of Human Rights Violation Investigations: After the WCK attack, current US President Biden released a statement in which he claimed, “Israel has pledged to conduct a thorough investigation into why the aid workers’ vehicles were hit by airstrikes. That investigation must be swift, it must bring accountability, and its findings must be made public.” This has been the most frustrating and unbelievable statement I’ve heard in recent days. In what world, in what courtroom, are alleged perpetrators allowed to investigate their own alleged crimes? The answer is none. This is setting such a dangerous precedent, one that could haunt the international human rights system for a long time.
The Problem with Precedent: Precedent operates on the assumption that the decisions made in the past were made thoughtfully and with full regard to the legal system it operates in, as argued above - this is not the case for Israel. Letting this become the precedent for future conflicts will only lead to more civilian casualties in future wars and conflicts. Precedent only works if its progressive, the traditional order of non-interference, slow rule of law, and impunity under the guise of “fighting terrorism,” means that conflicts like this will only continue and the perpetrators will get more violent, as they know they can get away with it as Israel is now. Additionally, if we allow Israel to continue investigating themselves, all their war crimes will be erased from history.
Retrospective Hindsight and The Crime of Desensitization: Lastly, this threat does not only involve those within the professional international community, but you and I. We cannot treat these tragedies as retrospective hindsight, these are another human’s entire lives, their loved ones, their homeland. Similar to the problem of precedent, there’s a struggle in the international to identify human rights violations as they are occurring and this is a major threat to the system created to prevent such violations. Secondly, you and I must armor ourselves to not fall victim to the crime of desensitization. After half a year of watching a genocide unfold on our phones and televisions, from the comfort of our warm homes, while eating fresh food, it is easy to feel guilty, and at the same time, numb. However, I urge you to continue speaking out, attending protests; posting, donating, listening. You may never know the impact of your small actions in the world, but please believe that someone else does. Gaza does.
In most of my blog posts, I like to try to end on a positive or hopeful note. I can’t find it in me to do that with this post. Fortunately, there are stronger souls than me, especially in Gaza, who can fill in the hope when I’m lacking. Therefore, I’ll end this with the words of Palestinians poets, still fighting for their life and their homeland.
From Karim Wafa-Al Hussaini, @Karimwafa1 on Instagram,
I am just a poet. I have no weapon. I can only fight with my pen, but in this world that is trying to erase us, maybe having a pen for a weapon isn’t so bad.
From Dounia Sabah, @dounia_sabah_ on Instagram, titled “My Love, My Palestine”
“My heart cries for I have not stepped foot in my homeland. Would I be unable to see from its magnificence? Will the tears block my sight as I first lay my eyes where our Prophet ascended to the heavens? Or perhaps by the sight of my people’s blood spilt?
O, how do they see a people and only think of power? What disease infects those hearts? Those are the people that are truly blinded. Though this world should not be granted for such evil doers. Feces of the earth are those that gain power by inflicting harm, who then turn their backs and lay claim their victims be the oppressors. Nay, human is not the word for you.
My love, my Palestine, it has been promised by Allah that you will be free. SubhanAllah, what a day!”
Lastly, from Mahmoud Darwish, a late famous Palestinian poet.
“The war will end, and the leaders will shake hands, and the old lady will still wait for her martyred son, and that woman will wait for her beloved husband, and those children will wait for their heroic father. I don’t know who sold the homeland but I know who paid the price.”
Forever, Free Palestine.
