Does the Israel Defense Forces Violate International Law?

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Amid a region filled with tyranny, violence, and human rights abuses, Israel strictly abides by the tenets of international law, and this includes during the recent War with Hamas. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) incorporates the principles of International Humanitarian Law (IHL), or “war law,” into its basic doctrine, and the nation’s Supreme Court oversees all of Israel’s military and government decisions. Their record of compliance with international law is strong. 

But Israel’s detractors are keenly aware of this reality and manipulate international law in a way to make Israel look bad. The Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs (JCPA) says that Israel’s enemies invent “rules that are applied only to Israel and not to other states or in other situations.” In so doing, they distract from their own violation of human rights and the abuse of their people.

Palestinian leaders—the Palestinian Authority (PA) in the West Bank and Hamas in Gaza—are systematic violators of international law. Hamas targets civilians—but it also oppresses its own women, persecutes minorities, and murders its political opponents. In the West Bank, the PA frequently employs torture and jails political opponents simply for disagreeing.

Protecting Human Rights

Conversely, a core value of the IDF is the protection of human life and dignity—regardless of whether that life is Israeli or Palestinian. The IDF Code of Conduct reads:

The IDF and its soldiers are obligated to protect human dignity. Every human being is of value regardless of his or her origin, religion, nationality, gender, status, or position. … IDF servicemen and women will act in a judicious and safe manner in all they do, out of recognition of the supreme value of human life. 

While Palestinian terrorists seek to maximize civilian casualties regardless of age or gender, Israel does everything in its power to minimize harm to all civilians. The IDF uses various strategies to accomplish this, from telephone calls to dropping leaflets alerting civilians to move out of harm’s way to diverting missiles mid-air. In the War with Hamas, the IDF also set up combat-free corridors for the evacuation of residences from combat areas and dropped leaflets with maps to direct people to safe passage. In addition, Israel has allowed over 300,000 tons of food and supplies to enter Gaza since October 2023.

Hamas terrorists, however, wear everyday clothing so they are indistinguishable from civilians, which greatly endangers the lives of the civilian population. According to the Foreign Press Association, Hamas releases phony civilian casualty statistics. They do not exclude combatants or even civilians who died of disease or natural causes from their casualty reports.

They also censor and threaten foreign journalists so they will not reveal the truth about Hamas' actions. In the current War with Hamas, the United Nations has even been cooperating with the terrorist organization—and while condemning Israel’s actions taken in self-defense, never condemned Hamas’ terrorist activities nor initiation of the conflict. UN casualty reports can also not be trusted.

Israel integrates international law into its military operations, and the IDF’s Military Advocate General reviews operations for compliance with IHL. If a soldier violates IHL, they face investigation and possible prosecution for misconduct. On top of that, civilian courts and independent watchdogs monitor Israeli actions to help ensure accountability. Hamas and the Palestinian Authority, on the other hand, have no legal oversight, nor do they investigate human rights abuses.

The Right of Self-Defense

International Humanitarian Law does not explicitly prohibit the use of force to eliminate a military organization such as Hamas, which Israel, the United States, and other countries consider a terrorist group. Israel’s use of force to achieve its aim of eliminating Hamas also abides by the right of self-defense under UN Charter Article 51, which allows Israel's actions of “inherent” self-defense derived from customary international law under the law of armed conflict. It is not about the genocide of the Gaza people but the defeat and removal of a jihadist militia ruling over the people.

Following Article 51, Israel takes every possible step to target only Hamas militants and infrastructure and minimize civilian casualties, while Hamas, rather than protecting Gazan civilians and moving them out of harm’s way, uses civilians as human shields to make Israel out to be the unethical one. 

Code of Ethics

In a 2018 article in the Jerusalem Post, one Arab Israeli IDF soldier called the IDF “the most humane and moral army in the world with the highest code of ethics and human values.”[1] He writes: “The IDF is an army that faces complex challenges and dilemmas in an explosive region, but it is an army that is level-headed and always keeps human life as its ultimate highest value. The IDF is an army that will bend over backward to save lives and to ensure that innocent individuals are not harmed, even if it means complicating the military operation.”

The IDF Code of Ethics is one of the first things soldiers and officers learn to ensure they will know how to conduct themselves in the case of war. It focuses on four fundamental values: Defense of the State of Israel and its residents, patriotism and loyalty to Israel, human dignity, and statehood.

Even so, Israel’s conduct in war is not perfect—no nation’s is—but its guiding principles, legal oversight, and moral commitments demonstrate an extraordinary effort to uphold international law and protect innocent life in the most difficult circumstances. While Hamas deliberately targets civilians and uses human shields, the IDF, under ethical obligation, operates under stricter standards than most militaries. 

Though in war there may be incidents that don’t live up to these standards, they are exceptions and not the norm, and they do not reflect the IDF, nor the State of Israel. 

This article was originally published on December 6, 2023, at: https://icejusa.org/2024/02/01/lies-about-israel/
[1] https://www.israelanswers.com/blog/its-time-i-break-my-silence
Photo Credit: ©Getty Images/Nancy Anderson

For over 40 years, Dr. Susan Michael has advanced the International Christian Embassy Jerusalem (ICEJ) in the USA and worldwide. She serves as the USA President and sits on the ICEJ’s international Board of Directors. She is frequently asked to address complex issues to diverse audiences—including antisemitism, Jewish-Christian relations, and Middle East affairs—and does so with clarity and grace. Dr. Michael leads the American Christian Leaders for Israel (ACLI) network, has authored books, such as Encounter the 3D Bible: How to Read the Bible so It Comes to Life, and has developed educational resources, including the IsraelAnswers website, ICEJ U online courses, and curricula for Christian colleges.

This article originally appeared on Christianity.com. For more faith-building resources, visit Christianity.com.