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Ten Israeli Human Rights Organizations: serious violations of International Humanitarian Law





Ten Human Rights Organizations Send an Urgent Letter to the Attorney General:
Concerns Regarding Serious Violations of International Humanitarian Law in the
IDF`s Operations in Gaza

B’Tselem - Gisha - The Association for Civil Rights in Israel – The Public
Committee against Torture in Israel - Hamoked: Center for the Defence of the
Individual - Yesh Din - Adalah - Machsom Watch - Rabbis for Human Rights -
Physicians for Human Rights – Israel


Ten human rights organizations urgently contacted Attorney General Yehuda
Weinstein today following the release of reports on the nature of attacks within
the Gaza Strip and the high rate of civilian casualties. This information raises
concerns about grave violations of international humanitarian law.

The organizations demanded that the Attorney General instruct the government to
refrain from violating the laws of war and re-evaluate its aggressive policy and
rules of engagement. The organizations seek to clarify whether the Attorney
General critically evaluated the legal advice supplied to the Military Advocate
General that underpins `Operation Protective Edge`, and calls on him to
establish an external, independent and effective investigatory mechanism to
examine the decision making of the political and operational establishment as
required by international law and supported by the rulings of the High Court of
Justice.

The joint letter notes that more than 400 people have been killed and thousands
injured since the beginning of Operation Protective Edge, the vast majority of
which are Palestinians. More than 80 of the dead Palestinians are children.
According to estimates provided by the United Nations, civilian casualties
constitute 70% of the deaths.

The letter illustrates several instances of severe attacks suffered by
Palestinian civilians. In the neighborhood of Shujaya, newly released data
reveals a shocking picture of dozens of dead Palestinians, including at least 17
children and 14 women. In this case, serious concern is raised concerning the
legality of the operation, an in particular, the potential violation of the
fundamental principles of the laws of war, specifically the principle of
distinguishing between combatants and civilians. The organizations assert that
actions that do not enable a distinction between combatants and civilians must
be avoided so much as possible to minimize civilian casualties.

The organizations emphasize that sending alerts or providing warnings to
residents does not transform them, or their homes, into legitimate military
targets, and does not exempt the army from its duty to avoid executing
indiscriminate attacks in the area. `In the absence of a protected area for
residents that provides shelter and an answer to their humanitarian needs,
military commanders can not claim that they have taken sufficient precautions to
avoid causing injury`.

The organizations point in their letter to a number of significant attacks on
civilian targets, including the shelling of a cafe that killed 9 civilians, the
shelling of a beach that caused the death of 4 children and the bombing of a
home for disabled persons that killed 2 residents. Even if there were legitimate
military targets in these locations, as was suggested by the IDF spokesperson,
the consequences of these attacks raises concerns that insufficient measures
were adopted to prevent incurring civilian casualties and that questions of
proportionality were not considered in the decision to execute the maneuver.

The letter also reviews a number of cases of bombings of residential apartments
where, according to the IDF spokesperson, Hamas and Islamic Jihad operatives
resided. As such, the bombing of the Kwarea family home took the lives of 8
people, 6 of which were children. In the bombing of the Hammad family home that
occurred that same evening, 6 people were killed in their sleep. In the bombing
of the al-Haj family home, 8 people were killed. Three children from the
Shuheiber family, 8 year old and 11 year old boys and their 8 year old cousin,
were killed as a result of a warning missile that was directed at a nearby
house. The organizations assert that it is illegal to attack a residential
dwelling just because it is the residence of a operative of an enemy
organization. Even in the case that the house was used to conduct military
operations, there is still a duty to consider questions of proportionality
concerning the danger to civilian life.

The organizations emphasized in the letter that violations of the laws of war by
the opposing party in a conflict does not warrant or justify the violation of
Israel`s obligations under the laws of war.


To read the full letter (in Hebrew) - http://www.acri.org.il/he/wp-
content/uploads/2014/07/yoamash210714.pdf

An English translation of the letter will be available from Tuesday afternoon
(22.07.2014). It can be accessed on ACRI`s website, or if you respond to this
mail, we will send you a copy.


For media enquiries contact

Steven Beck (ACRI)
steven@acri.org.il
+972 73 705 0733
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