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Exposing the Distortion of Law and Truth in the Accusation that Israel Is Committing Genocide

(Substack) Maj. (ret.) John Spencer and Arsen Ostrovsky - Recycled accusations of "genocide" are once again hurled at Israel by activists masquerading as "scholars." We have interviewed IDF commanders and soldiers on the ground, visited aid staging and distribution centers, and studied operational orders. From this vantage point, the accusation of genocide is not only false but obscene, a distortion of truth and complicity in Hamas's propaganda campaign. Under the 1948 Genocide Convention, genocide is not a vague political term but a tightly defined legal crime: acts committed with the intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnic, racial, or religious group. The critical element is specific "intent to destroy." Nothing we have seen in Gaza remotely approaches proof of genocidal intent or action. The war is ugly, painful, and devastating, but it is fought by Israel in self-defense and in accordance with the laws of armed conflict. Israel's objective has never been to wipe out the Palestinian people. Its stated and demonstrated aim has been to dismantle Hamas's military and governing capacity, prevent further terrorist atrocities, and return the hostages. Unable to prove genocidal intent, accusers instead point to the tragic effects of war: civilian deaths, destroyed buildings, food insecurity. They then argue that these outcomes prove genocide. But that is not how international law works. If devastation or high casualties alone proved genocidal intent, nearly every war in history could be branded genocide - stripping the word of meaning. Israel has implemented measures unmatched by any modern military to mitigate civilian harm: advance warnings, leaflets, phone alerts, humanitarian corridors, pauses for evacuation, and canceling legitimate strikes when civilian risk was too high. At the same time, Israel has facilitated unprecedented humanitarian assistance while Hamas still governs territory, fires rockets into Israeli towns, and holds hostages. On the battlefield, the IDF has employed precision munitions, aborted strikes when children were visible, and deployed ground forces at great risk to its own soldiers precisely to minimize harm to civilians. This is the opposite of genocide. John Spencer is chair of urban warfare studies at the Modern War Institute at West Point. Arsen Ostrovsky is an Israeli-based human rights lawyer who is CEO of the International Legal Forum and a Senior Fellow at the Misgav Institute for National Security.
2025-09-07 00:00:00
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