On October 19, Israeli bombardment destroyed a building on the university campus. St. Porphyry Greek Orthodox Churchin the center of the old city Loop. 450 members of the small Christian community in the capital of Sharia were taking refuge there. 18 civilians died and 12 people were injured in the attack. The oldest victim was 80 years old; The youngest was only a few months old.
According to Amnesty International’s detailed analysis of the evidence (videos and testimonies), there is no indication that the holy site was a legitimate military target. Therefore, this is an action This human rights NGO concludes that the incident should be investigated as a war crime by the International Criminal Court.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) even published a drone-recorded video on their social networks, showing the moment of an air attack on one of the buildings on the church grounds. Tsahal (Israeli Army) said “IDF warplanes attacked the command and control center of a Hamas terrorist who was firing rockets and mortars at Israel,” which did not provide any indication of the presence of any military targets. Modern militaries have legal teams that approve operations. In the Israeli case, this task should be carried out by the Military Prosecutor’s Office. They could not prove the attacks. The video was deleted shortly after from networks.
However, Amnesty International preserved it and analyzed it to verify its authenticity. He determined its geographical location to confirm that it corresponded to the bombing of the church. Did the same with this Raw footage of the massacre was recorded after the bombing and uploaded to social networks. He spoke to a dozen witnesses. He examined satellite images before and after the attack. One of the weapons experts identified the type of ammunition used against an area full of civilians: large-caliber ammunition that hit directly at the building where the dead and wounded were sheltering.
“Even if it is a military target, according to international humanitarian law, the civilian population must be informed first for evacuation,” he explains to this newspaper. Maria Pastor, Spokesperson for Amnesty International.
Those responsible for the temple had claimed hundreds of civilians before the attack, internally displaced persons fleeing the bombings, They took shelter there. Tsahal was aware of his existence. “The Israeli army’s decision to launch an attack on a religious site known to contain displaced civilians was reckless and therefore constitutes a war crime, even if a military target was believed to be in the vicinity.” They are arguing.
Attack on a house full of civilians
Human rights organizations and lawyers who are handling the case against Israel and Hamas at the International Criminal Court have been working on this issue for weeks. Document specific attack incidents where international law has been violated. Every war crime case must be tested and compared to the laws that determine which targets are legitimate and which are not. The Chief Prosecutor of the Hague warned the Israeli Army’s lawyers that they must justify every attack on civilian areas: houses, hospitals, schools or bakeries are protected targets, except in certain cases that must be proven.
Amnesty International has examined in more detail a massacre that, according to the organization, shows Israel attacking civilian targets indiscriminately. It happened last October 20th. At around two o’clock in the afternoon, Israeli warplanes attacked a person’s house. Al Aydi familyIn the Al Nuseyrat refugee camp in central Gaza. 28 civilians, including 12 children, lost their lives. Among others, father and mother Rami and Ranin al Aydi and their three children: 10-year-old Ghina; Maya, 8 and Iyad, 6.
The investigation concluded that everyone present in the Al Audi family home and two nearby homes were civilians. Two members of the Al Aydi family He even had a work permit in IsraelThe expedition requires strict security checks by Israeli authorities for both those who receive the permit and their extended families.
“We were sitting at home, our house was full of people, boys and girls, family members,” one survivor recalls. “Suddenly, unexpectedly, everything collapsed on us. All my siblings are dead, my nieces and nephews. “My mother is dead, my sisters are dead, our house is gone.”
A level never seen before
“We first analyzed the crimes committed by Hamas and other Palestinian groups on October 7,” says María Pastor. “We are now documenting war crimes in Gaza, just as we did in the Ukraine war. But in this case The level of violence, number and nature of these super war crimes“Far more than we have seen in other modern conflicts.”
According to international law, parties to armed conflicts must always distinguish between, on the one hand, civilian persons and civilian objects; warriors and military targets, for another. Direct bombings against civilians or objects are considered indiscriminate attacks and are prohibited. Indiscriminate attacks that kill or injure civilians constitute war crimes.
Amnesty International found no indication of military targets in the areas of the churches and houses where the two attacks took place. The fact that the people in the buildings are not military targets increases concerns that these attacks are against civilians.
Amnesty International argues that when Israel attacks a military target, it is obliged to take all possible measures to avoid causing death and injury to civilians and, in any case, to minimize this. These measures involve doing everything possible to verify the existence of a target. This is a military target; choose attack means and methods that will minimize harm to civilians; assessing whether an attack would be disproportionate; to provide effective and advance notice whenever possible; and call off the attack if it becomes clear that it is not legitimate.
International humanitarian law also requires Hamas and other armed groups to take all possible measures to protect civilians from the effects of attacks. This includes avoiding, to the extent possible, locating military targets in or near densely populated areas.
These standards are not respected in Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza, in which more than 16,000 people, mostly civilians, died. It was approximately Tel Aviv’s retaliation. 1,400 Israeli citizens died at the hands of Islamist group On October 7.