Attacks on Israeli Civilians by Palestinians

Protect civilians from the impact of hostilities

8 July 2014

A house bombed in Gaza. Photo: Ibrahim Abu Mustafa, Reuters, 8 July 2014
A house bombed in Gaza. Photo: Ibrahim Abu Mustafa, Reuters, 8 July 2014

Shortly after midnight today, 8 July 2014, the Israeli military launched Operation Protective Edge in the Gaza Strip. According to media reports, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu instructed the defense establishment “to conduct a continuous, long and forceful operation in Gaza. We have to be prepared to go all the way, and even a ground offensive is currently on the table." The media further reported that the military was preparing to call up reservists.

Since last night, the military has continuously bombed various parts of the Gaza Strip. According to the IDF Spokesperson, by the afternoon, the military has attacked some 100 targets, including the homes of senior Hamas activists, launching infrastructure, tunnels used for mounting attacks, and training bases.

The media also reported that by this afternoon (8 July), armed Palestinian organizations in the Gaza Strip had fired some 50 rockets and mortar shells at southern Israel.

B’Tselem’s initial investigation found that since the operation began, approximately 10 people were killed in several attacks throughout the Gaza Strip. Of these, to the best of B’Tselem’s knowledge at this point, seven persons – most of them minors – were killed when the home of alleged Hamas activist ‘Odeh al-Kaware’ was bombed. Another 25 persons were reportedly injured in the incident, some of them severely so. The initial investigation indicates that as the homes of other Hamas activists had been bombed (as the IDF Spokesperson reported this morning), many area residents gathered around al-Kaware’s home to prevent its bombing. It is unclear as yet whether the house was still surrounded by people at the time of the bombing. According to Israeli daily Ha’aretz, defense establishment officials stated that the bombed family home was the target of the aerial attack. B’Tselem is currently investigating the circumstances of the attack and whether the military was aware of civilian presence close by.

This morning, the IDF Spokesperson stated that the military had deliberately bombed four homes of persons defined as senior Hamas activists, without mentioning whether the homes were legitimate military objectives, such as, for example, ammunition storages. International humanitarian law permits attacks only against targets that effectively assist military efforts, when attacking them can gain a military advantage. The homes of Hamas activists are not, in themselves, legitimate targets, especially when family members reside in them. Defining them as targets is neither reasonable nor legal and permits harm to civilians who are supposed to be protected by international law.

B'Tselem reiterates its demand that all parties to the hostilities take all possible measures to prevent harm to civilians. The rules of war obligate all parties to a conflict to do their utmost to defend the civilian population. Deliberate targeting of civilians is expressly prohibited.

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Girl in Gaza after Israeli airstrike. Photo: Mohammed Zaanoun, Reuters, 7 Oct. 2023.

The Gaza Strip

Revenge policy in motion; Israel committing war crimes in Gaza

On Saturday, hundreds of Palestinian militants entered Israel from the Gaza Strip, killing hundreds of civilians, soldiers and police officers, burning down homes and kidnapping more than 100 people. The full extent of these horrifying crimes is slowly coming to light. The same evening, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated that Israel is at war with Gaza and will “forcefully avenge“. He promised to reduce Hamas locations to rubble and told Gazans: “Get out now. We will act everywhere and with full force.” Defense Minister Yoav Gallant ordered all the crossings between Israel and Gaza closed and announced there would be “no electricity, no food, no fuel – everything shut down. We are fighting against human animals and are acting accordingly.” This morning, the IDF Spokesperson said “the emphasis is on damage rather than on precision.” A criminal policy of revenge is underway. Since Saturday, Israel has dropped hundreds of tons of bombs on Gaza. Netanyahu’s call for residents to leave is a farce with no bearing on reality. The Gaza Strip is closed off on all sides and the residents have no way out. There are no shelters and no way to seek cover from airstrikes. Among the people killed, some of them still trapped under debris, are entire families wiped out in a single bombardment – including at least 140 minors and 105 women. The death toll is rising by the minute. The order to prefer damage over precision has also been carried out. Hundreds of homes already lie in ruins, including residential towers reduced to rubble and houses that collapsed on top of the inhabitants. More than 180,000 people have been internally displaced. Roads and public buildings, including schools and medical clinics, have been damaged by airstrikes. Hospitals are functioning only partially – some were damaged by bombing, and all are severely lacking medical equipment and fuel for electric generators. The decision to imprison Gaza even more tightly than usual has also been implemented. The crossings are closed and goods cannot be brought in. Israel has disconnected Gaza from the power grid and the population now depends on the small local power plant, which will only hold out for several days until the diesel fuel runs out. Water is also in short supply: almost all the water extracted in Gaza requires desalination or purification to drink, and these rely on electricity. Israel has also cut back on the water it sells to Gaza, and part of the water network has been damaged by bombing. There is no justification for these actions, which constitute war crimes openly ordered by top Israeli officials. Even in the face of horror and terror – intentionally harming civilians, their property and civilian infrastructure is always prohibited. One crime does not justify another, nor does one kind of injustice justify another. Acts of revenge are prohibited by basic moral principles and by the provisions of international law that Israel is obliged to uphold. Contrary to what Israeli ministers are implying, this policy is not new, but has been implemented towards Gaza for many years. The death, destruction, pain and horror it has wrought have led to nothing but more horror. It is time to demand to a different reality – a new future for all those who live here.

10 October 2023

Israeli civilians fleeing armed Palestinians near Re'im, an Israeli community near the Gaza border. Still photo from a video posted on social media. Photo used under Sec. 27a of the Copyright Law

Attacks on Israeli Civilians by Palestinians

Abandoning the basic moral principle that all human beings were created equal (“b’tselem elohim”) is a loss of humanity. 

On Saturday, Hamas committed a shocking crime whose horrifying dimensions are slowly becoming clear. Hundreds of Palestinian militants entered Israeli territory and opened fire indiscriminately, killing hundreds of civilians and injuring thousands. They burned down homes with the occupants inside and kidnapped more than 100 people – including children, women and elderly people – to be used as bargaining chips. Many others are still missing, their fate unknown. Witness accounts and footage have been pouring in of people locked in their homes for hours, terrified, while militants roam, shooting, outside and even within the house; of people taken hostage; of partygoers fleeing in every direction under gunfire, with hundreds killed; and of families who still do not know what happened to loved ones taken into the Gaza Strip. Meanwhile, Israeli government ministers now calling to kill, destroy, crush and even starve the residents of Gaza forget that this is already Israeli policy. The military is currently bombarding Gaza even though it is clear, once again, that many of the victims are civilians – including women, children and the elderly. Intentional attacks on civilians are prohibited and unacceptable. There is no justification for such crimes, whether they are committed as part of a struggle for freedom from oppression or cited as part of a war against terror. Abandoning the basic moral principle that all human beings were created equal (“b’tselem elohim”) is a loss of humanity.

9 October 2023