Expert: Rules for Israel despite Hamas crimes
According to a US human rights expert, Israel is obliged to minimize the number of civilian casualties in the Gaza war as far as possible. The basic rule is that precautions must be taken to ensure that civilians are not unduly harmed, Professor Leonard Rubenstein of Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore told CNN.
There is no question that the Islamist Hamas has repeatedly committed war crimes, for example by indiscriminately firing rockets at Israel, taking hostages, killing civilians or using civilians as human shields, the lawyer added. Nevertheless, it should be remembered: "The rules of war apply equally to everyone, regardless of whether it is an armed group, a non-state armed group or a legitimate state military."
There are some basic principles. One of these is to only attack military objects. Civilians should also not be attacked, nor should indiscriminate attacks be carried out in which an entire area is shot at rather than targeted. Even if a civilian facility such as a hospital is used for firing or storing weapons or for other military purposes, there is an obligation, even if it can be attacked, to minimize the damage to the civilians there.
Rubenstein: "This leads to barbarism"
With regard to the thousands of airstrikes, Rubenstein said: "The sheer number of airstrikes in such a short period of time in a densely populated area and the high number of casualties raise serious doubts as to whether Israel has fulfilled its obligations." The war crimes committed by Hamas do not absolve Israel of its responsibility. "You cannot retaliate for one crime by committing another. That actually leads to barbarism," he said. It then spirals further and further downwards in a spiral in which there are no rules left.
You have to look at whether Israel is committing crimes. There are some signs that this is the case, such as the collective punishment of cutting off water, fuel and electricity to the inhabitants of the Gaza Strip.
In light of the Gaza war's high civilian casualty count and the vast number of airstrikes in a densely populated area, Professor Leonard Rubenstein raises concerns that Israel may not be adhering to its obligation to minimize harm to civilians. Despite Hamas's war crimes, Rubenstein emphasizes that Israel cannot retaliate with similar crimes, as doing so would only lead to further violations of human rights.
Source: www.dpa.com
