Gaza war must end for the sake of humanity

Gaza is “worse than hell on earth,” International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) chief Mirjana Spoljaric told the BBC’s Jermy Bowen following her latest visit to the strip. “We cannot continue to watch what is happening. It’s surpassing any acceptable, legal, moral, and humane standard. The level of destruction, the level of suffering...we are watching a people entirely stripped of its human dignity. It should really shock our collective conscience.” She said all states must strive to end the war and return the hostages held by Hamas to their families.

“Israel has a right to defend itself,” she said in response to the October 7th, 2023, raid by Hamas, which killed 1,200 and abducted 150 from southern Israel. However, she argued both Hamas and Israel must abide by the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949 which prohibits attacks on civilians.” The Geneva Convention must not be disrespected or hollowed out by rule breakers. “The rules apply to everyone,” she stated before declaring, “A child in Gaza has exactly the same protections under the Geneva Conventions as a child in Israel.”

“Nowhere is safe in Gaza. Nowhere. Not for the civilians, not for the hostages,” said Spoljaric. “That’s a fact. And (the Red Cross) hospital is not safe. I don’t recall another situation (like this) that I have seen where we operate in the midst of hostilities.” Events in Gaza will have repercussions far beyond Palestinians and Israelis because the Geneva Conventions that “protect the fundamental rights of every human being” are not respected and applied.

Spoljaric appealed to all parties for a ceasefire to “preserve a pathway back to peace for the region.” If this is destroyed, “the region will never find safety and security. But we can stop (the war) now. It’s not too late.” She declared, “Every state is under the obligation to use their means, their peaceful means, to help reverse what is happening in Gaza today.” Her words are particularly pertinent as the ICRC is the custodian of the Geneva Conventions which provide protection for civilians at time of war. However, this interview coincided with the US veto of the latest UN Security Council resolution that called for an “immediate, unconditional, and permanent ceasefire in Gaza.” While fourteen of the fifteen members of the Council voted in favour of the resolution, including four of the five permanent members (France, Britain, China and Russia), the fifth the US, cast its veto, the latest on five ceasefire resolutions. US ambassador Dorothy Shea defended the Trump administration’s negative stand by saying, “Any product that undermines our close ally Israel’s security is a non-starter.” Her unfortunate use of the word “product” shows contempt not only for the resolution — which was supposed to end the killing, maiming, and dispossession of Palestinians in Gaza - but also for the Security Council and the United Nations as a world body.

As if her words were not damaging enough, US Secretary of State Marco expanded on her remark by stating, “We will not support any measure that fails to condemn Hamas, does not call for Hamas to disarm and leave Gaza, draws a false equivalence between Israel and Hamas, or disregards Israel’s right to defend itself.” There is no “equivalence” between Hamas, a liberation movement, and Israel, an illegal occupier, according to the International Court of Justice (ICJ).

Rubio said that Hamas could end “this brutal conflict immediately” by laying down its arms and releasing all remaining hostages, including the remains of four Americans. “Many members of the Security Council still refuse to acknowledge this reality and performative efforts like this resolution undermine diplomatic efforts to reach a ceasefire.” He followed up by repeating the Israeli propaganda line: “This resolution would have only empowered Hamas to continue stealing aid and threatening civilians.” UN agencies argue there is “no evidence” that Hamas is stealing aid and Hamas has ceased “threatening (Israeli) civilians” since Israel mounted its 20-month war on Gaza.

In this region it is the US and Israel which are flagrantly violating the laws of war and peace as well as humanitarian law as defined in the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949 which was adopted after the horrors of World War II. The body of this Convention spells out regulations which apply to protected persons, including civilians in occupied territory. In addition, the Convention provides rules for hospitals and safety zones, hospital staff, the wounded and sick (including land, air and sea transport to safety), free passage and delivery of food and medical supplies, and humanitarian workers and organisations.

As Article 49 deals with the behaviour of occupying powers, it should be applicable to Israel’s conquest of Palestinian territory. The Article reads: “Individual or mass forcible transfers, as well as deportations of protected persons from occupied territory to the territory of the Occupying Power or to that of any other country, occupied or not, are prohibited, regardless of their motive.” The Article also states that persons evacuated due to conflict “shall be transferred back to their homes as soon as hostilities in the area in question have ceased.” The Article ends with the prohibition which Israel has ignored since its expansion by war in 1967: “The Occupying Power shall not deport or transfer parts of its own civilian population into the territory it occupies.” That means there must be no Israeli settlers in occupied Palestinian territory in accordance with the ICJ ruling of July 2024.

It is unfortunate that that Israel’s US-backed Gaza war has coincided with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Russia has been condemned and sanctioned for mounting a military offensive against Ukraine which has killed 12,000 Ukrainian civilians out of 37.7 million and wreaked limited destruction on Ukrainian cities, towns and infrastructure. Europe has provided weapons and funds for Kyiv, as this war is on European soil and Europeans believe threat hangs over them. In a conflict far from Europe, Israel has killed more than 54,000 Palestinians in Gaza, starved 2.3 million Gazans, and destroyed the coastal strip. There is no comparison between the two conflicts, but “double standards” instead of the Geneva Conventions have ruled.

As global popular outrage over US-backed Israel’s brutal behaviour and violations of the laws of war has peaked, Europe has finally responded. On May 28th, Spain, Ireland, and Norway recognised a Palestinian State. Last week French President Emmanuel Macron warned of “double standards” and called for return to the “two state solution” by creating a Palestinian state. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer belatedly described Israel’s war in Gaza as “appalling, counterproductive and intolerable.” German Chancellor Friedrich Merz called Gaza a “human tragedy and political catastrophe,” questioned “the goal of the Israeli army in Gaza,” and said that the harm to civilians “can no longer be justified as a fight against terrorism.” Actions speak louder than words. Bombed and starving Gazans await international intervention.