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Israel, Hamas and the Law of War

(Wall Street Journal) David B. Rivkin Jr. and Lee A. Casey - As it defends itself against Hamas in Gaza, Israel has come under sustained political, media and legal attack for supposedly violating international law. These criticisms are based on a distorted view of the law of war and threaten the ability of all law-abiding nations to defend themselves. The law of war is in no way intended to level the playing field in favor of the weaker party. A critical aspect of the laws of war is that each party to a conflict is primarily responsible for protecting its own civilian population by moving them away from military targets and taking other measures to shield them. Hamas not only fails to meet these obligations, it uses civilians as human shields and invites casualties for propaganda purposes. Based on currently available credible evidence, there is no reasonable case that Israel has violated the laws of war. Hamas, by contrast, indisputably commits war crimes by deliberately attacking civilians, brutalizing Israeli women and children, taking hostages, systematically locating military facilities in or near civilian installations, and using Palestinian civilians as human shields. The writers served at the Justice Department and the White House Counsel's Office in the Reagan and George H.W. Bush administrations.
2024-05-30 00:00:00
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