human rights lawyer
Raji Sourani first faced harm when his Gaza home was hit by Israeli F-16s. It was October during the third week of the conflict. A few days earlier, a strike next to the apartment block triggered alarms across the area. International NGO colleagues and friends urged him to leave the Strip, fearing he could become a target because of his legal advocacy for Palestinian victims of occupation. Sourani had spent years handling cases in Hebrew courts and at the International Criminal Court in The Hague. He has said he does not want to abandon the Strip where he has lived his entire life, wary that leaving could contribute to a new displacement, or Nakba. Ultimately, with the help of friends, he and his wife and son crossed the Rafah Crossing to seek safety in Egypt.
“They attacked me twice; it’s a miracle we survived and are still breathing,” the Palestinian lawyer told this newspaper by phone from Egypt. “I spent my whole life under the Israeli regime — prisons, torture, wars. But I have never seen anything like what is happening now. This is unprecedented. It crosses all boundaries. Thousands of people are rotting under the rubble.”
human rights lawyer
Sourani is not an ordinary attorney. He leads one of the most respected human rights organizations in Palestine. He has received international recognitions, including the Alternative Nobel Prize, the Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights Prize, and more recently a prominent award from a Spanish human rights association. His organization and others like it work to document violations and provide legal aid to victims, supported in part by international development assistance tied to foreign affairs ministries. The Palestine Center for Human Rights, among others, has played a central role in documenting abuses and advocating for accountability.
Through its work and that of allied groups such as Al Haq, Sourani has helped influence the process that led to investigations by the International Criminal Court in 2021. Ongoing efforts in this area now include a large cohort of international lawyers, led by figures such as Gilles Devers, who have called for investigations into alleged war crimes and possible genocide by various actors in the occupied territories since 2014.
flight from Gaza
“Operating under these conditions was a luxury we could not afford,” Sourani reflected. “The attacks target everything: homes, streets, towers, the sewage system, power plants, hospitals, ambulances. They destroy essential infrastructure. Yet the commitment to seeking justice for victims remains my backbone.”
Earlier, Sourani had filed a criminal complaint with the Hague Chief Prosecutor over perceived inaction regarding a prior lawsuit brought by his predecessor. He questioned why authorities had not pursued accountability when thousands had already died, arguing that political considerations should not guide legal action. The debate over accountability continued as new voices joined the call for investigations into grave crimes in the region.
In recent weeks, efforts have revived discussions about pursuing cases for war crimes, crimes against humanity, and potential genocide by all parties involved, including the Israeli army and Palestinian armed groups in the occupied territories since 2014.
During a press conference at the Rafah border crossing in Egypt, the prosecutor warned that civilian targets must be justified under international law, except in clearly defined circumstances. He also signaled that potential charges could be directed at Hamas for abuses in the conflict. The toll of the October 7 attacks was reported in the thousands of lives lost, prompting renewed calls for accountability and legal remedies.
The prosecutor later traveled to Ramallah to meet with President Mahmoud Abbas and conflict victims, emphasizing that the investigation remains a priority and that the process would proceed at a steady pace. He underscored the core principles of international humanitarian law: discrimination, precaution, and proportionality, and insisted that civilian structures such as schools, hospitals, and places of worship must be protected. Children should never be subjected to indiscriminate violence or harm.
As Sourani and the Palestinian Center for Human Rights continue to engage with the investigation, they bring firsthand experience of the impact of the conflict and a persistent call for justice. Their work remains focused on documenting abuses, supporting victims, and ensuring that legal avenues are pursued to hold violators to account.