Israeli troops conduct operations in the Gaza Strip in a handout picture released by the Israeli army on 8 September 2024 (AFP)
The Israeli government has very few options when arrest warrants are issued internationally against soldiers who served in Gaza and Lebanon – but it isn’t even deploying those at the moment.
It’s rare for the leading news story of the day in Israel to be about an event taking place on the other side of the planet. But that’s what Israelis woke up to on Sunday after reports emerged that local authorities in Brazil were looking to arrest an Israeli tourist for his alleged involvement in war crimes committed in Gaza.
Israeli forces stormed a Gaza City home on December 21, 2023, throwing grenades inside and opening fire on a room where a civilian family was sheltering, Human Rights Watch said
I suppose at this point it’s a waste of time to say that if you want to avoid being prosecuted for war crimes, don’t commit war crimes. But since we are already beyond that point let me say that advising soldiers not to broadcast their thuggish and illegal actions is not really good enough. Trying to cure soldiers of absolute stupidity does not touch on the moral and legal aspects of all this. As this article notes, Israel must actively launch its own investigations into breakages of law–and prosecute when necessary. I know that doesn’t happen but it should–and it should be demanded by any responsible leader or member of the public. But if the only thing the opposition to the current government can muster is to blame the current government for not protecting the soldiers well enough from their stupidity, then once again, they are dealing with the stupidity–not with the morality and illegality.
Blowing up houses and bragging you have done so is macabre, but far worse has been filmed. Through the IDF command system, permissive behavior was encouraged. This is not a rogue soldier but one under instruction by IDF to demolish neighborhoods, heritage, medical and vital infrastructure; war crimes.
What is remarkable is that Israeli society is not repulsed by the conduct. Soldiers knew about the rules of war and flouted them with glee. They don’t need protection from a corrupt government but are held to account.
‘Israel’s most wanted’ – a life sentence only averted by holidaying in Israel. Tables have well and truly turned now there is the category Gaza War Criminal
(Haaretz)