Unprecedented complaint: Hind Rajab Foundation files war crimes case against Israeli soldiers in Gaza

By Alireza Akbari

On Tuesday, Hind Rajab Foundation filed a groundbreaking complaint with the International Criminal Court (ICC) against 1,000 Israeli soldiers for genocidal war crimes in Gaza.

The foundation focuses on raising awareness about Israeli war crimes in Palestine by holding Zionists accountable in both Gaza and the occupied West Bank.

Its mission includes seeking justice through international legal channels and partnering with human rights organizations to prosecute Israeli perpetrators of war crimes and human rights violations. 

The foundation operates as part of the March 30 Movement, which was formed in response to the Israeli genocidal war on Gaza that began in early October 2023.

In its latest action, described by many as unprecedented, the foundation submitted a complaint backed by over 8,000 pieces of evidence, including videos, audio recordings, forensic reports, and social media documentation, pointing to Israeli soldiers' involvement in ongoing war crimes in Gaza.

The Belgium-based foundation is named after Hind Rajab, a six-year-old Palestinian girl who was murdered by the Israeli regime forces on February 10, 2024, following a ten-day disappearance.

Rajab's tragic story began on January 29, when her maternal uncle, Bashar Hamada, attempted to escape the relentless Israeli bombardments in the besieged Palestinian territory.

Seeking safety, Hamada and his family were stopped by Israeli forces in the Tal Al-Hawa neighborhood, where their car came under heavy fire.

Hamada, his wife, and three of their children were killed by Israeli forces instantly. 

The Hind Rajab Foundation was established in her memory to raise awareness of Israeli war crimes and pursue accountability for the regime’s acts of aggression in Gaza.

Details of the complaint

The complaint meticulously identifies all 1,000 Israeli soldiers by name, demonstrating their “direct involvement” in systematic attacks on Gaza's civilian population. The evidence, carefully collected and verified, illustrates significant violations of international law, including:

• Destruction of civilian infrastructure: Targeted attacks on homes, hospitals, schools, markets, mosques, and other civilian infrastructure.

• Illegal occupation and looting: Soldiers were documented occupying civilian homes, looting personal belongings, and exploiting occupied properties.

• Participation in the Gaza blockade: The soldiers played an active role in enforcing a blockade that deprived civilians of essential goods such as food, water, and medical supplies.

• Targeting civilians: Audio and video evidence shows soldiers deliberately attacking non-combatant individuals, including medical personnel and journalists.

• Use of inhumane warfare tactics: Indiscriminate bombing campaigns, starvation, and the systematic destruction of civilian infrastructure were all part of their actions.

The complaint also includes high-ranking Israeli military officers and commanders responsible for orchestrating and executing military offensives against Palestinians in Gaza.

The complaint is the largest ever submitted to the ICC, aiming to document Israeli war crimes comprehensively and establish a historical record.

In a statement following the submission, the foundation described it as a "significant moment in the fight for justice," honoring Rajab and countless other victims of the ongoing Israeli genocide in Gaza.

The foundation voiced its support for ICC Prosecutor Karim Khan, urging immediate action, including issuing arrest warrants for Benjamin Netanyahu and his war cabinet members.

It also called on the international community to actively support the prosecution and arrest of the accused, committing to further legal actions on national and international levels as part of its long-term mission for justice and accountability.

One year of Israel's genocide in Gaza 

The Israeli regime's unbridled aggression on the Gaza Strip, which completed one year on Monday, has killed more than 42,000 people, apart from 97,000 others injured. The devastation continues, as reports suggest around 10,000 Palestinians remain trapped under rubble.

Israeli forces have consistently targeted civilians, with records showing the deaths of at least 16,756 children—the highest number of children killed in a single year of war in decades. Additionally, over 11,000 women have been killed during the Israeli onslaught on the Gaza Strip.

Israeli forces have employed inhumane tactics, including the deliberate destruction of civilian infrastructures. The Gaza Media Office reports that 34 hospitals and 80 health centers have been rendered inoperative, destroyed in Israeli bombings.

Gaza civil defense figures indicate that at least 128,187 structures in Gaza have been damaged or destroyed, with an additional 35,591 potentially affected. This damage amounts to 66 percent of all buildings in Gaza, leaving nearly 228,000 housing units impacted.

An estimated 75,000 tonnes of explosives have been dropped on Gaza by the Israeli regime in the last year, with experts estimating it will take years to clear the more than 42 million tonnes of debris, much of it contaminated with unexploded ordnance.

Additionally, there is growing concern over the health impact of widespread asbestos exposure caused by the Israeli bombings, which can lead to serious diseases like lung cancer, and mesothelioma.

Also, the full blockade imposed on Gaza since October 2023 has exacerbated the humanitarian crisis, resulting in severe food shortages. More than 96 percent of women and children aged six months to two years are not meeting minimum nutritional requirements due to a lack of dietary diversity.

The destruction of Gaza’s healthcare system by the Israeli airstrikes has left much of the medical infrastructure inoperative. Over the past year, at least 114 hospitals and clinics have been destroyed, severely limiting access to essential medical care for thousands of patients.

According to the Gaza Media Office, 34 hospitals and 80 health centers have been rendered inoperative due to Israeli attacks, and 162 health institutions have been hit. Additionally, at least 131 ambulances have been damaged or destroyed.

The World Health Organization (WHO) reports that between 3,105 and 4,050 limb amputations have been performed, alongside around 2,000 spinal cord or traumatic brain injuries, and a similar number of severe burn injuries.

The year-long Israeli aggression on the Palestinian enclave has also displaced at least 1.9 million Gazans, exacerbating the ongoing humanitarian crisis in the besieged territory.

With the announcement of the complaint against Israeli soldiers by the Hind Rajab Foundation, netizens took to X, formerly Twitter, to discuss how it could halt the ongoing Israeli genocide in Gaza.

Political activist and Chairman of the March 30 Movement, Dyab Abou Jahjah, said he spoke with a British journalist about the case against 1,000 Israeli soldiers and how it can contribute to ending Israeli impunity and also discussed the "ideas and strategies of the Hind Rajab Foundation."

International human rights lawyer and activist, and former senior United Nations human rights official Craig Gerard Mokhiber shared the hashtag #NoImpunity.

“The Hind Rajab Foundation has filed an ICC complaint against 1,000 Israeli soldiers who participated in the genocide in Palestine. Many more dual-national perpetrators walking free on the streets of Western countries must be identified and held to account before the law. #NoImpunity," he wrote.

An X user named Beta wrote that The Hind Rajab Foundation has filed an "unprecedented and historic complaint" with the ICC against 1,000 Israeli soldiers for "war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide in Gaza, Palestine.”

A Palestinian-American journalist and award-winning producer Jamal Dajani commented, “Hind Rajab Foundation files historic ICC complaint against 1,000 Israeli soldiers for war crimes in Gaza.”

User Jane Anne Seymour described the act as “a very important development."

"This is a very important development. Hind Rajab and her family must get justice, and her Israeli perpetrators who murdered Hind with 355 bullets must be held to account and prosecuted.”

Another X user named PalMedia underlined that Israeli impunity is coming to an end.

“The days of zero consequences for war crimes committed by Israel in Gaza are over. Israeli soldiers risk arrest when they leave the country. The Hind Rajab Foundation filing a complaint at the ICC against 1,000 Israeli soldiers is just the start on the long road ahead for accountability.”

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