Press Release: The International Centre of Justice for Palestinians (ICJP) calls for a UN led investigation into the recent Israeli attacks in the Gaza Strip.
The International Centre of Justice for Palestinians (ICJP) calls for a UN led investigation into the recent Israeli attacks in the Gaza Strip.
London: On 5th August 2022, Israeli forces launched a series of airstrikes across various locations in the Gaza Strip, killing 10 people, including Alaa Qaddoum, a five-year-old Palestinian girl. Over the course of the weekend, these sustained strikes resulted in the killing of 44 Palestinians, including 15 children, according to the Palestinian Health Authority. The Gaza Health Ministry reports that an additional 300 Palestinians were injured in the attacks, which also caused significant damage to residential properties, and resulted in the temporary closure of Gaza’s sole power plant.
The Israeli military announced that Tayseer al-Jabari, the commander of the northern division of the al-Quds Brigades – the military wing of Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) – had been killed in the attack, and that he “was entrusted in making many decisions in the PIJ and carried out many anti-tank missile attacks against Israeli civilians and IDF soldiers recently”.
The ICJP welcomes the UN Special Rapporteur on the occupied Palestinian territories statement regarding the illegal and irresponsible nature of these attacks, and welcome the call for a UN led investigation regarding potential breaches of international law in the commissioning and enacting of these strikes.
This indiscriminate approach to targeted strikes, and the civilian casualties it results in, is a violation of international humanitarian law and human rights law. The ‘preemptive’ nature of these strikes is yet another escalation of the IDFs use of force in the region, and a further breach of the rights of its Palestinian residents.
These attacks are the latest in a series of international law violations carried out by Israel within the Occupied Territories. The ICJP believes that this reaffirms the need for the Metropolitan Police’s War Crimes Unit to investigate the recruitment of British citizens to the IDF in full combat roles via the Mahal programme.
The Metropolitan Police have actively investigated British citizens who have fought in other jurisdictions, however, to-date, the ICJP are not aware of any Britons who joined the IDF being investigated by the Metropolitan Police.
The ICJP are requesting that Scotland Yard identify, investigate and potentially prosecute British citizens who are alleged to have participated in international crimes under the UK’s counter terrorism legislation. The S015 War Crimes Unit have acknowledged receipt of the request, which is currently under their review.
Claddagh NicLochlainn, Public Affairs and Communications Officer at the ICJP said;
“The ICJP shares the concerns of the UN Special Rapporteur on the occupied Palestinian territories regarding the latest round of strikes by Israeli forces in Gaza, and call for a UN led investigation regarding the legality of these strikes under international law.
In particular, this escalation of force on the part of Israeli forces heightens our concern regarding British citizens travelling to join the IDF as part of the Mahal programme, and we call on the Metropolitan police to urgently review our request to investigate those individuals, just as individuals who have travelled to join foreign military forces in other jurisdictions are investigated. In order to ensure Britain meets its obligations under international law, it is imperative that the potential participation in international crimes is adequately investigated, wholly and impartially”
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ENDS