The US State Department has stated that Israel may have breached international humanitarian law by using American-supplied weapons in some instances during the Gaza war. According to the report submitted to Congress, the US believes that those arms have been used in ways “inconsistent” with Israel’s obligations. However, the report also clarified that the US did not have complete information in its assessment and that shipments could continue.
Although the report was critical of some Israeli operations in Gaza, it stopped short of definitively saying that the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) campaign had breached international law. It acknowledged that Israel had faced an “extraordinary military challenge” fighting Hamas in Gaza. It also noted that Hamas often uses civilian infrastructure for military purposes and civilians as human shields, making it difficult to determine legitimate targets.
The report stated that given Israel’s significant reliance on US-made weapons, they had probably been used “in instances inconsistent with its international humanitarian law obligations or with established best practices for mitigating civilian harm.” Furthermore, the report stated that Israel’s efforts to mitigate civilian harm have been described as “inconsistent, ineffective and inadequate” by the UN and humanitarian organizations.
The report also suggested that Israel did not fully cooperate with US efforts to maximize humanitarian aid into Gaza in the initial months of the conflict, but it said that this situation had changed.
David Satterfield, a former US ambassador to Turkey and one of the contributors to the report, told the BBC that the US would continue to keep Israeli actions “under review.” The report was finally released days after US President Joe Biden publicly threatened to withhold certain bombs and artillery shells from Israel if it went ahead with an assault on Rafah, the last stronghold of Hamas in Gaza.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had dismissed President Biden’s warnings that the operation in Rafah would cross a “red line” and vowed that Israel would “stand-alone” if necessary. More than 80,000 people have fled Rafah since Monday, with Israeli tanks reportedly massed close to built-up areas amid constant bombardment.
In summary, the report suggests that Israel may have breached international humanitarian law in the Gaza conflict. However, given Israel’s significant reliance on US-made weapons, shipments could continue. The report also notes that Hamas often uses civilians as human shields, making it difficult to determine legitimate targets, but that Israel’s efforts to mitigate civilian harm have been described as inadequate. The US will continue to keep Israeli actions “under review.”
