ollowing a Hamas attack on Israel, there has been constant bombardment of the Gaza strip by Israeli forces. After having ordered evacuation of Palestinians from the south, Israel has continued air raids in the region.

The United Nations has called out Israel’s stoppage of water, food, fuel and electricity supply to 2.3 million people. More than 5,791 Palestinians have been killed during the attacks, according to Hamas authorities. Meanwhile, experts as well as lay people have been debating the international humanitarian law, which governs armed combat and military occupation.

The Geneva Conventions of 1949, some subsequent treaties and customary international law have shaped the current approach on the subject.

The 1949 Geneva Conventions have been formally endorsed by all member states of the United Nations. These conventions have been further reinforced by decisions made by the international war crimes tribunals. While Hamas and Islamic Jihad cannot be party to these treaties, it binds nation states as well as non-state armed groups engaging in combat.

The laws of war are non-reciprocal, meaning they apply regardless of what the other side does. Claiming power imbalances or other inequities to justify crimes like targeting civilians or collective punishment is never justified.

Laws of war are applied exclusively during armed conflicts. Other laws, including international human rights laws, apply at all times and require the states to defend the rights of the people on their territory.

This rule also applies to occupation, such as Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territory, without consent. Despite claims of annexation, international law does not grant a state sovereignty over occupied territory. The occupying power must treat the inhabitants humanely and give food and medical care.

It is of utmost importance that during armed conflict, parties must always distinguish between armed individuals and civilians. Parties may only attack combatants and military targets, never civilians. International law requires parties to take all practicable steps to minimise injury to civilians and civilian objects; mere claims that they are not the target do not suffice.

An attack that fails to distinguish between combatants and civilians is likewise illegal. The law requires humane treatment of prisoners of war. Taking hostages and employing “human shields” is illegal. Unless circumstances prevent it, wartime rules oblige parties to give “effective advance warning” of civilian attacks. Warnings are ineffective if civilians cannot flee to a safer region. However, warnings do not excuse parties from their responsibility to protect people. Civilians who stay after a warning are still protected. Attackers must not target them and must protect them as much as possible.

False warnings that employ violence to terrorise the population and force them to leave are illegal.

Israel’s occupation of Palestine was already a sensitive matter. The law on occupation, specifically Article 49 of the Fourth Geneva Convention, states that “the Occupying Power shall not deport or transfer parts of its own civilian population into the territory it occupies.” It also prohibits the “individual or mass forcible transfers, as well as deportations of protected persons from occupied territory.”

Israel cannot use state land and natural resources for non-military or local uses as the occupying power. The Hague Convention, Fourth Geneva Convention, Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, and many state laws ban “pillage” — the illicit acquisition of property by an occupying power.

Israel’s acts of settlement, discrimination and contravention during occupation seem to be of relatively little significant now. The fact that the international watchdogs, including the United Nations, have been ignoring these violations has amounted to giving Israel a free hand.

In many instances, the conduct of Israeli forces has amounted to war crimes. These have included targeting civilians, hostage-taking and collective punishment. Israeli bombardments have targeted more than 3 million civilians in Gaza. The Gaza Health Ministry has reported more than 10,000 Palestinian deaths since October 7, including nearly 4,000 children. Bombs have levelled buildings and neighbourhoods. Israeli forces have burned densely populated neighbourhoods using white phosphorus, which ignites when oxygen contacts it. White phosphorus can burn to the bone and kill 10 percent of the body.

The cutting off of food, water, electricity and gasoline supplies has been expressly described as collective punishment by the UN. Wilfully preventing humanitarian aid from reaching civilians is another war crime.

The primary objective of the Geneva Conventions and, thus, international humanitarian law, is to safeguard civilian populations during armed conflicts and mitigate the adverse effects of warfare. According to the regulations governing armed conflict, combatants include individuals who belong to state armed forces, as well as those affiliated with military and volunteer forces and non-state armed groups. The deliberate engagement of non-combatants or non-military assets is categorically prohibited according to the principles and regulations of armed conflict. Nevertheless, there are situations in which objects that are often associated with civilian use can be deemed as valid military targets.

Accountability for war crimes and violations is a dire need. The International Criminal Court, the world’s permanent war crimes tribunal, opened in The Hague in 2002. It has jurisdiction over war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide in its 123 member states. Several countries, including China, the US, Russia, India and Egypt are not members. Israel does not acknowledge the ICC’s jurisdiction, but Palestinian Authority does.

The ICC prosecutors are currently investigating 17 cases, from Ukraine to Afghanistan to Sudan and Myanmar. The court’s prosecutor is currently investigating crimes in Palestine. The investigation was started by his predecessor in 2021. However, no arrest warrants have been issued till date.

Ending atrocities requires accountability. UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres has urged the 15-member UN Security Council to protect civilians and renewed the demand for a ceasefire. However, no UNSC resolution has resulted.

The writer is an advocate of the high court, a founding partner at Lex Mercatoria and a visiting faculty member at Bahria University’s Law Department.