Is Israel Committing Genocide in Gaza?
Is Israel Committing Genocide in Gaza?
Bob Feferman presents “Making the Case for Israel”
Since the brutal Hamas attack on Israel on October 7th, Israel has been forced to fight a war for its survival on multiple fronts. There is the war against Hamas in Gaza and the West Bank, and the war with Hezbollah on Israel’s northern border. Beyond these military battles is a struggle against the demonization of Israel and its right to self-defense.
On that front, Israel’s enemies claim that the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) is committing the crime of genocide in Gaza. A look at the facts shows the opposite is true.
First, let us remember that on October 6th there was a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas. The war began on October 7th with the unprovoked cross-border invasion of Israel with more than 3,000 Hamas terrorists who brutally murdered 1,200 Israelis, raped women, and took 250 hostages.
What Israel did in response to this unprovoked Hamas attack was a legitimate act of self-defense to free the hostages and prevent another October 7th.
It is also important to remember the history of the war between Israel and Hamas.
Following the signing of the 1993 Oslo Accords, Hamas and other Palestinian terror organizations carried out more than 150 suicide bombings (1993-2005) to blow up the hopes for peace through the two-state solution. Since Hamas took control of Gaza in 2007, they have fired nearly 20,000 rockets at Israeli civilians. And all this was before October 7th.
In his response to the accusation of genocide by the International Court of Justice, on January 24th, former Israeli Supreme Court Chief Justice Aharon Barak delivered this statement to the court.
He wrote:
“Central to the crime of genocide is the element of intent, namely the intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnic, racial, or religious group as such.”
Justice Barak refuted the charge of genocide with this powerful argument.
He wrote:
“The evidence presented by Israel shows that it is the opposite intent that is plausible and guides the military operation in Gaza.”
He went on to write:
“Israel pointed out that it has adopted several measures to minimize the impact of hostilities on civilians. For example, Israel continues to supply its own water to Gaza by two pipelines; it has increased access to medical supplies, facilitated the establishment of field hospitals and distributed fuel and winter equipment…. the IDF is doing everything possible to avoid harming those not involved.”
The proof of Israel’s intentions can be seen in the number of casualties. Gaza has a population of more than 2.1 million civilians. According to the Gaza Ministry of Health, 38,000 people have died in Gaza since the war began.
There is no doubt that every civilian casualty in Gaza is a human tragedy. And the pictures of devastation show the ferocious battles being fought in a complex urban environment.
Yet, the numbers given by the Gaza Ministry of Health do not give an accurate picture of the casualties.
According to Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has killed more than 14,000 terrorists since October 7th. The Gaza Ministry of Health, controlled by Hamas, does not differentiate between civilians and fighters.
Although we may never know the accurate number of civilian casualties in Gaza, if we include the number of terrorists killed by the IDF, the number of civilian casualties is much lower than the 38,000 cited by the Gaza Ministry of Health.
Just based on these facts alone, it is obvious that Israel is not committing genocide. Yet, the question remains: Has the IDF done everything possible to mitigate harm to civilians?
To answer this question, it is important to read the analysis of John Spencer, America’s leading expert on urban warfare.
John Spencer is the chair of Urban Warfare Studies at the Modern War Institute at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. He also served as an infantry soldier for 25 years including two tours in Iraq. And he has visited Israel three times during the war and gone into Gaza with IDF forces.
In an important article in Newsweek, he wrote:
“…by my analysis, Israel has implemented more precautions to prevent civilian harm than any military in history—above and beyond what international law requires and more than the U.S. did in its wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.”
The blame for the tragedy of Gaza must be placed squarely on the leadership of Hamas. Since their violent takeover of Gaza from the Palestinian Authority in 2007, Hamas has squandered millions of dollars in the building of more than 350 miles of tunnels and thousands of rockets to serve one purpose: its war for the destruction of Israel.
Following the attack on Israel on October 7th, Hamas has been cynically using its civilian population as human shields above ground while its leaders and fighters hide in tunnels below ground.
The accusation of genocide is just one more falsehood meant to demonize Israel, delegitimize its right to self-defense, and question its right to exist.
Bob Feferman
Director of Community Relations
Jewish Federation of St. Joseph Valley