The undersigned:
Represented, whether individually or jointly, by
Gilles Devers, lawyer of the Bar Association of Lyon, 22 rue Constantine, 69001, LYON, Palais n° 239, which designates the office in his legal practice for everything necessary in these proceedings,
Abdel Azim El Maghraby, Vice-secretary General of the Arabic Union of Lawyers, lawyers in the Illustrious Bar Association of Cairo,
Abdel Rahman Beneumer, former President of the AMDH, former senior member of the Illustrious Bar Association of Rabat,
Abdelrahim el Jami, senior member of the Illustrious Bar Association of Rabat,
Ahmed Bin O. Altuwaijri, Saudi Arabia
Alexis Deswaef, rue du Congrès, 49, 1000 Brussels, +322 210 02 00, a.deswaef@quartierdeslibertes.be, which designates the office in his legal practice for everything necessary in these proceedings,
Bechir Essid, senior member of the Bar Association of Tunisia,
Brahim Semlali, Secretary General of the Arabic Union of Lawyers, senior member of the Illustrious Bar Association of Casablanca,
Dominique Cochain, lawyer of the Bar Association of Paris
Gaston Vogel, Luxembourg
Georges Henri Beauthier, rue Berckmans 89 1060, Brussels, +322 538 90 10, gh@beauthier.be, which designates the office in his legal practice for everything necessary in these proceedings,
Guy THOMAS, Luxembourg,
Hélène Crokart, avenue de Selliers de Moranville, 1082 Brussels, +3224823314, Helene.crokart@jurinet.net, which designates the office in his legal practice for everything necessary in these proceedings,
Jamil Youness, lawyer of the Bar Association of Paris
Jutta Stoll, LL.M., Frankfurt/Main, Germany
Khalid Soufiani (Arab Commission for Human Rights) Rabat
Michael Chahine, Munich
Mostefa Bouchachi, (Algerian League for the Defence of Human Rights), Algiers
Mourad SEBKI , Luxembourg
Nada Serra Abouzeid, lawyer of the Bar Association of Paris
Najet Hadriche Abouali, lawyer of the Bar Association of Paris, 215bis, Boulevard Saint Germain 75007 Paris, e-mail: nhadriche@yahoo.fr
Narriman Kattineh, lawyer of the Bar Association of Nice
Philippe Favard, Brussels,
Sevda GÖ, lawyer of the Bar Association of Istanbul
Stanley Cohen, Stanley Cohen & Associates, New York
Véronique van der Plancke, Brussels
Acting in accordance with Article 15.1 of the Statute of Rome of 17 July 1998 by which the International Criminal Court was established at The Hague,
Have the honour to submit to the Court information leading to confirm its veracity (art. 15.2), in order to determine whether reasonable grounds exist for opening an investigation (art. 15.3) with a view to appeal to the Pre-Trial Chamber (art. 15.4)
for the war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in the Palestinian territory of Gaza from 27 December 2008 to 18 January 2009.
The following group of associations is at the disposal of the Court for the purpose of furnishing all information and additional data which it considers appropriate.
The associations:
- Adameer for Human Rights, Gaza
- Al Mezan for Human Rights, Gaza
- International Bureau of Humanitarian NGOs, Geneva
- Arab Commission for Human Rights (ACHR)
- Arab Organization for Human Rights, Cairo
With power to represent the victims directly, they request the power to hereby present their written and verbal observations before the Pre-Trial Chamber (art. 15.3 of the Statute and 50.3 of the Rules of Procedure).
OUTLINE
1. Actions
1.1. The beginning of a war "without respite" on the part of Israel
1.1.1. The war of 27 December 2008
1.1.2. Concordant testimonies
1.2. Actions confirmed by international institutions
1.2.1. Human Rights Council, 9 January 2009
1.2.2. World Health Organization, 8 January 2009
1.2.3. UNICEF, 8 January 2009
1.2.4. UNRWA, 8 January 2009
1.2.5. United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child, 13 January 2009
1.2.6. UN Human Rights Council, 12 January 2009
1.3. Actions recognized and condemned by the UN
1.3.1. Declarations
1.3.1.1. Declarations by Ban Ki-moon, 29 December 2008 and 13 January 2009
1.3.1.2. Press conference given by John Holmes and Karen Koning AbuZayd
1.3.1.3. UN, 6 January 2009
1.3.2. Security Council meeting of 31 December 2008
1.3.3. Declaration of the president of the UN General Assembly, 14 January 2009
2. The general juridical framework
2.1. The obligation to protect the Palestinian population, the question of international law
2.1.1. Foundations of law
2.1.2. Proven actions
2.2. The crime of aggression
2.2.1. Foundations of law
2.2.2. Proven actions
3. The accusations
3.1. Foundations of law
3.1.1. The objectives of the International Criminal Court
3.1.2. The jurisdiction of the Court
3.1.2.1. A material jurisdiction, with regard to the actions committed
3.1.2.2. Two descriptions
3.1.2.2.1. Definition of war crimes
3.1.2.2.2. Definition of crimes against humanity
3.1.3. The personal character of the prosecution
3.1.4. The initiation of the prosecution
3.1.4.1. Accusation by the Security Council (Articles 12 and 13 b)
3.1.4.2. Denunciation of the states which are signatories of the Statute (Article 14)
3.1.4.3. Report of information before the Prosecutor (Article 15)
3.2. Proven actions
3.2.1. On the admissibility of the cause
3.2.2. On the grounds of the accusation
3.2.2.1. On the general framework
3.2.2.2. On the description of the actions (crimes of war and crimes against humanity)
3.2.3. On the urgency, related to the flagrancy of the crime
3.2.4. On the pertinence
4. Appendices
1. Actions
1.1. The beginning of a war "without respite" on the part of Israel
1.1.1. The war of 27 December 2008
On 27 December 2008, the government of the State of Israel started a military operation against the territory of Gaza.
To begin with, this aggression had its own peculiarities:
- A population not protected by a state and without a regular army;
- A territory with a very limited area and closed by a total isolation of the population, who could not escape;
- A very high population density;
- An impoverished population in a very precarious condition as a result of the prolonged blockade that has been imposed.
On 29 December 2008, the Israeli Minister of Defense, Ehud Barak, affirmed to the Knesset [parliament], that the State of Israel had commenced a war “without respite". In fact, this operation, called "Cast Lead", combined violence and obstinacy. On 18 January 2009, Israel decided to put an end to this aggression.
The balance sheet puts the number of Palestinians killed at 1314, among them 412 children and 100 women, and the number of wounded at 5300, among them 1885 children and 795 women. Thirteen Israelis lost their lives in this conflict. For its part, the United Nations mourns nine victims and eleven wounded, and almost fifty of its buildings suffered damage.
The administrative personnel of the government and the ministries cannot be considered as combatants, on the pretext that Hamas exercises power. Or in reality there is only a minority of combatants among the victims.
In fact, the million and a half inhabitants lived in a state of terror, deprived of the basic necessities to guarantee survival, because of the blockade imposed by Israel.
1.1.2. Concordant testimonies
The press and humanitarian organizations furnish numerous direct testimonies:
- about the manifest disproportion between this military offensive and the alleged cause, that is to say, the launching of rockets from the Palestinian territory of Gaza, which have caused one death in two years.
- about the terrible ordeals to which the civilian population has been subjected, since it involves their physical security or the protection of their possessions.
The press emphasized the lack of discrimination in the violence of the Israeli attack.
Some NGOs such as Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch underline the extreme gravity of the actions and maintain that it is indispensable to carry out investigations in order to assess all aspects of this aggression.
Two highly esteemed observers can be cited:
Leyla Chahid
The general delegate of Palestine to the European Union, Leyla Chahid, has accused Israel of "war crimes” in Gaza and has reproached the international community of having "forgotten the Palestinian population".
And she added: “Nothing justifies the bombing of a civilian population of a million and a half people who live in an area of 356 square kilometres, and to say that they are attacking the Hamas combatants is absurd. They are bombing a civilian population which has been under siege for several months already (…). Basically it is a war crime”.
Stéphane Hessel
Stéphane Hessel said in an interview in Swiss Info, on 5 January 2009:
Stéphane Hessel: "In reality, the word that applies – which ought to be applied - is 'war crimes', including crimes against humanity. But this word has to be used with caution, especially in Geneva, the place where the High Commissioner for Human Rights resides, who can have an important opinion on the subject.
"For my part, having been in Gaza, having seen the refugee camps with thousands of children, the way in which they have been bombarded seems to me a real crime against humanity."
Question: "Does one dare to utter that word? What is shocking is the disproportion between the Palestinian rockets and a massive land offensive?"
Stéphane Hessel: "It's the whole way of acting. Naturally it's the disproportion, it's right to point that out… A densely inhabited territory, in all probability the most densely inhabited in the world, which has been attacked with military instruments that can't differentiate between soldiers and civilians. Besides, there are no soldiers, in Gaza there are only civilians – militants at most, but not an army.
"In this way, it's an army, one of the most powerful in the world, that attacks a population that has no defence to rely on at all. That's really a war crime."
1.2. Actions confirmed by international institutions
The major international institutions have confirmed the gravity of the attacks against humanitarian law.
1.2.1. Human Rights Council, 9 January 2009
Before the Human Rights Council, meeting on Friday in extraordinary session in Geneva, concerning the situation in Gaza, Navi Pillay, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, requested an investigation about the violations of human rights in the occupied Palestinian territory.
The High Commissioner for Human Rights emphasized the principle of responsibility for the violations of human rights and suggested that the Council propose a mission to evaluate the violations committed by the two parties in the conflict, so that the actions and the responsibilities could be established.
Navi Pillay indicated that some violations could constitute war crimes, which imply the personal responsibility of those who committed the acts.
She also asked that the envoys and experts of the Human Rights Council be able to enter the territories of Gaza and the West Bank without hindrance.
1.2.2. World Health Organization, 8 January 2009
The health services of Gaza, already debilitated, are on the verge of collapse if no measures are taken immediately to strengthen and preserve them, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).
According to this organization, medical supplies which could save lives continue to accumulate at the borders. There are not enough trucks to transport them and their distribution in Gaza is difficult for reasons of security and due to lack of infrastructure.
In addition, the intensity of the aerial bombing and the hostilities on the terrain considerably limit the movements of patients and emergency medical services, and in the same way, the transfers and displacements of essential medical personnel for the proper functioning of the services. The medical evacuation of some gravely wounded people out of Gaza is impossible, not only because of the lack of security but also because of the closing of the border and the restriction of movements.
The hospitals are overburdened. In the emergency services and intensive care units there are not enough beds and the operating rooms cannot cope with the number of victims. In these centres, the wounded are placed directly on the floor, the communique emphasized.
1.2.3. UNICEF, 8 January 2009
Ann Veneran, the executive director of the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), appeared deeply worried about the suspension, on Thursday, of the humanitarian aid operations by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) in Gaza because of the lack of security. “This can only make worse a humanitarian situation that is already critical and will endanger the children even more.”
She added, “The physical and psychological damage which this conflict inflicts on the children on both sides must stop.”
8 January 2009 – On Thursday, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) suspended its humanitarian activities in Gaza after Israelis fired shots at a convoy, which killed one of its employees, shots which were condemned by the Secretary General of the UN, Ban Ki-moon
1.2.4. UNRWA, 8 January 2009
The Secretary General condemned the Israel army's shooting at a United Nations humanitarian in Gaza, which caused the death of a UNRWA employee and wounded two other members of this agency. Several local employees of the UNRWA were killed.
The UNRWA had to suspend the distribution of food because it was unable to guarantee the safety of its employees, which is unacceptable.
1.2.5. United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child, 13 January 2009
The United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child was deeply disturbed by the devastating effects which the current military operations in Gaza have on children.
1.2.6. UN Human Rights Council, 12 January 2009
On Monday, the United Nations Human Rights Council decided to send an international, independent mission entrusted with the task of investigating the violations of human rights committed by Israel in Gaza, after an extraordinary session devoted to the situation in the Palestinian territory where the Israeli army has been conducting a military offensive for more than two weeks.
1.3. Actions recognized and condemned by the UN
This acknowledgement and these condemnations follow from the various declarations of high-ranking responsible UN officials and the meeting of the Security Council on 31 December 2008.
1.3.1. Declarations
1.3.1.1. Declarations of Ban Ki-moon, Secretary General of the UN
Declaration of 29 December 2008 (SG/SM/12025).
The Secretary General of the UN showed anxiety about "the extent of the violence and the blood bath which is taking place in Gaza” and declared that “even though he recognizes Israel's preoccupation with its security owing to the continued firing of rockets from Gaza” he reiterated “firmly, Israel's obligation to respect international humanitarian law and the norms that apply to human rights” and condemned the excessive use of force which caused deaths and injuries among civilians.
Declaration of 29 December 2008 (SG/SM/12044).
Ban Ki-moon considered that it was the task of the International Criminal Court (ICC) or other international agencies to establish whether the aggressions committed in Gaza could represent "war crimes".
The Secretary General of the UN on his visit to Gaza (14 January 2009)
The Secretary General of the UN, Ban Ki-moon, was supposed to fly on Tuesday to the Near East in order to speed up the diplomatic efforts aimed at securing a cease-fire in Gaza, where the hostilities continue for the 18th day of the Israeli military offensive against the Palestinian movement Hamas.
The Secretary General of the UN (20 January 2009)
The leader of the UN, Ban Ki-moon, demanded accountability from Israel during his visit on Tuesday to Gaza, where he inspected a UN complex that had been bombed, along wth other United Nations buildings, by the Israeli army in the offensive which has devastate the Palestinian territory.
“It is necessary to open a thorough investigation, a complete explanation in order to guarantee that this will never happen again. (Those responsible) must render an account before the judicial authorities”, declared the Secretary General of the United Nations, speaking to journalists.
1.3.1.2. Press conference given by John Holmes, United Nations Under-Secretary for Humanitarian Affairs and Coordinator of Emergency Aid, and Karen Koning AbuZayd, General Commissioner of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), who participated by way of a video conference from Gaza on 31 December 2008.
John Holmes pointed out that on 30 December the number of wounded Palestinians was between 1550 and 1900 persons and that on the Israeli side the balance was four dead and 30 persons wounded by the firing of rockets by Hamas.
Making a comparison, he added that while in October 2008, 125 trucks entered Gaza daily with food and other humanitarian goods, this number had been reduced to fewer than 60 trucks since the Israeli attack started.
After describing this military operation as “especially lethal and bloody”, he indicated that the hospitals of Gaza are at low ebb: “What complicates the task of the hospital personnel is the cutoffs of electricity caused by the lack of fuel”. John Holmes explained that the central electric station of Gaza had stopped functioning and this shutdown had plunged about 650,000 Gazans into darkness for approximately 16 hours a day, and had made the functioning of the public infrastucture more difficult.
For her part, Karen Koning AbuZayd declared that “Although hunger is not yet a phenomenon widely spread across the territory, the fact is that the inhabitants of Gaza are unable to eat as they should”. She also stated that for the first time since it was present in the zone, the UNRWA had requested that large quantities of candles be sent, in order to mitigate the lack of electricity and alleviate the psychological suffering of the inhabitants of Gaza.
Karen Koning AbuZayd admitted that she was unable to determine whether the five mosques destroyed by Israel had been attacked because they had served to conceal Hamas weapons. In the same way she declined to comment on the Israeli decision to keep the main points of entry and exit of Gaza closed, because these sites could be possible terrorist targets.
1.3.1.3. UN, 6 January 2009
The explosion of Israeli mortar shells that fell on a UN school on Tuesday near the Jabaliya camp in Gaza killed at least 30 and wounded 50, an attack that was sternly condemned by the Secretary General of the United Nations, Ban Ki-moon.
“Three mortar shells fell on the school of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) which served as a refuge for the Palestinians of the Jabaliya camp”, John Ging, the UNRWA official responsible for humanitarian affairs, stated on Tuesday, in a press conference via video from Gaza.
Another missile attack on a school in Gaza City also killed three people. Finally, on Tuesday morning, the attack against a house in the Bureij camp wounded ten people in a nearby health centre.
“These attacks by the Israeli military forces, which endanger the United Nations installations being used as refuges, are totally unacceptable and must not happen," stated Ban Ki-moon in several declarations.
1.3.2. Security Council meeting of 31 December 2008 (CS/9560)
The Security Council met on 31 December 2008.
Ban Ki-moon, Secretary General of the UN, condemned Hamas' attacks against Israel, but in referring to Israel's response, he used the expression "disproportionate use of force".
Given the fact that a civilian population is involved, Ban Ki-moon described the people of Gaza as “terrorized” and explained that the Israeli attacks “have also hit houses, mosques, and businesses. More than 300 people have been killed, among them at least 60 women and children”.
This attack strikes a population weakened by the blockade. The oil pipeline that makes it possible to supply Gaza with fuel has been cut. Ban Ki-moon explained that there is also “a shortage of flour which is translated into the gradual disappearance of bread” and that “the central electric station of Gaza remains closed approximately 16 hours per day, because of the lack of fuel”.
Riyad Mansur, Palestine's Permanent Observer at the United Nations, declared that “the Israeli occupier acted in violation of international law, in persisting in a brutal aggression against hundreds of places in Gaza and this is in spite of the Security Council's declaration of 28 December. Israel continues to ignore all the calls for a cease-fire", he added, accusing the Israeli government of acting in contempt of all human values of peace and solidarity.
Giadalla A. EttalhiI (Libyan Arab Jamahiriya) denounced the Israeli attack against Gaza, which he described as a “crime against humanity”, as “genocide” and a “war crime”.
Dumisani S. Kumalo (South Africa) affirmed that the Israeli attacks are a violation of international humanitarian law.
Marty Natalegawa (Indonesia) said that Israel must immediately put an end to its attacks against the innocent civilian population of Gaza and respect international humanitarian law.
Bui The Giang (Vietnam) declared that although Vietnam recognized Israel's right to defend itself, Vietnam condemned its disproportionate response which caused numerous civilian casualties among the population of Gaza.
Jorge Urbina (Costa Rica) considered that the disproportionate use of force by Israel cannot be justified, given that legitimate defence does not authorize the adoption of massive repressive measures. He also said that the dispositions of the Statute of Rome must be respected, intended to guarantee the protection of civilian populations and property, which assumes that the belligerents must differentiate between civilians and combatants.
Maged A. Abdelaziz (Egypt) maintained that the killings of civilians and the disproportionate use of force on the part of Israel constitute violations of international law. He demanded the intervention of the Security Council in order to bring this situation to an end, and asked that there be an end to the policy of the double standard of treatment that prevails in the Council when this region is involved.
Yahya Mahmasani, Permanent Observer of the League of Arab States at the United Nations, censured Israel's conduct, which could provoke an increase in the violence in the zone.
Jean Maurice Ripert (France) and Christine Detaille (Belgium) also utilized the argument of “disproportionate response and without consideration for the civilian population”.
1.3.3. Declaration by the president of the UN General Assembly, 14 January 2009
In some declarations on 14 January, the president of the General Assembly of the United Nations denounced these actions as constituting genocide.
* * *
This is the context in which the signatory associations appeal to you, in accordance with Article 15.1 of the Statute.
The signatory associations are especially concerned with the respect for fundamental rights in all parts of the planet and consider that, in confronting violence, the best response is justice.
2. The general juridical framework
2.1. The obligation to protect the Palestinian population, the question of international law
2.1.1. Foundations of law
In compliance with many resolutions and in particular with Resolution 356 of 22 November 1974, the UN has reaffirmed the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people in Palestine, including the right to self-determination without external interference and the right to independence and national sovereignty.
The same resolution recognized the Palestinian people's right to reclaim their rights by all possible means, in accordance with the objectives and principles of the United Nations' Charter. Thus by virtue of point 6 of the resolution, the Palestinian people can issue a call to all the states and international organizations to aid them in their struggle to reclaim their rights in accordance with the Charter.
2.1.2. Proven actions
A juridical foundation exists, insofar as the means and the aims are respected, for demonstrating full solidarity with the Palestinian people's struggle for their national liberation.
One of the dreary fallacies which the State of Israel persists in using is to maintain that what is involved is a war against Hamas. What is certain is that those who are suffering from the attacks are the Palestinian people, who must be protected by the international community.
The Palestinian people, who are a people without a completed juridical structure, are especially exposed to aggressions. From now on the texts must be interpreted so as to give the maximum protection possible to the Palestinian people in any situation.
2.2. The crime of aggression
2.2.1. Foundations of law
Article 2§ 4 of the Charter of the United Nations prohibits categorically, apart from exceptions, the threat of armed force or the use of armed forcer. This prohibition is a normative guarantee, in order to guarantee international peace and security for all states and peoples. The prohibition against having recourse to armed force refers to armed force in all its forms: war, repression, or any other form of the use of weapons, including aggression.
International law only envisages, in fact, two cases of legitimate recourse to armed force:
a. means of armed coercion decided on by the Security Council in accordance with Article 42 of the Charter of the United Nations in case of a threat to peace, of a breach of the peace, or of an act of aggression (chapter VII of the Charter).
b. legitimate defense in compliance with Article 51 of the Charter of the United Nations. This article recognizes for all states the inherent right to use armed force in case of suffering an armed aggression.
The reading and the interpretation of Article 2§ 4 of the Charter of the United Nations must be done from the perspective of the obligation to resolve conflicts by peaceful means, as established by Article 33. The obligation to seek a peaceful solution to conflicts by all means forms part of the law and is closely related to the prohibition -- in the broad sense -- against the use of force in international relations.
Furthermore, while ignoring Article 51 of the UN Charter, Israel did not even inform the Security Council and did not comply with the Council's requests.
2.2.2. Proven actions
The prohibition against the use of armed force is one of humankind's most significant achievements since the Second World War, and the condition for peace. However, Israel decided on its own account -- within the framework of a government that had resigned, and an electoral campaign faced by its principlal ministers -- to settle relations with the neighbouring people by means of weapons.
This involves the use of armed force by the State of Israel against the Palestinian people confined in the Gaza Strip and under an embargo imposed for the last 18 months by the Israeli state.
In the case of Israel's acts of war, the notion of legitimate defence is not applicable. The wording of Article 2§ 4 is clear in the content and the scope of the prohibition against the threat and the use of armed force. “All Members shall refrain in their international relations from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or the political independence of any state, or in any other manner inconsistent with the Purposes of the United Nations”.
By initiating a massive war and attacking the territory of the Gaza Strip in a general way and on a broad scale, the State of Israel has violated this fundamental provision of the Charter of the United Nations.
The Israeli authorities -– operating as organs of the state in international law -- have ordered the execution of military operations of a magnitude that violates the provisions of the Charter of the United Nations. They violate one of the fundamental norms of international law, directly endangering international peace and security.
These actions of special gravity are written in a known criminal context: the State of Israel is occupying Palestinian territory in violation of international law and the resolutions of the UN.
3. The accusations
3.1. Foundations of law
3.1.1. The objectives of the International Criminal Court
The International Criminal Court results from the agreements adopted by the Statute of Rome of 17 July 1998 and came into effect on 1 July 2002.
The preamble of the treaty explains the purposes of the jurisdiction for the signatory states:
“Conscious that all peoples are united by common bonds, their cultures pieced together in a shared heritage, and concerned that this delicate mosaic may be shattered at any time,
"Mindful that during this century millions of children, women and men have been victims of unimaginable atrocities that deeply shock the conscience of humanity,
"Recognizing that such grave crimes threaten the peace, security and well-being of the world,
"Affirming that the most serious crimes of concern to the international community as a whole must not go unpunished and that the effective prosecution must be ensured by taking measures at the national level and by enhancing international cooperation,
"Determined to put an end to impunity for the perpetrators of these crimes and thus to contribute to the prevention of such crimes,
"Recalling that it is the duty of every State to exercise its criminal jurisdiction over those responsible for international crimes…”
The treaty, emphasizing the importance of respect for fundamental rights during wars, understands that no formal impediment can hinder the prosecution of those guilty of what constitute infractions and reminds that it is an obligation of the states.
The signatory associations emphasize two paragraphs:
- the first paragraph: “Conscious that all peoples are united by common bonds, their cultures pieced together in a shared heritage, and concerned that this delicate mosaic may be shattered at any time”.
The Statute protects peoples and the people who do not have a state structure enjoy special protection;
- the third paragraph: “"Recognizing that such grave crimes threaten the peace, security and well-being of the world”.
In effect it involves both the memory of the victims and the rejection of the spiral of violence.
3.1.2. The jurisdiction of the Court
3.1.2.1. A material jurisdiction, with regard to the actions committed
In accordance with Article 1, the International Criminal Court exercises its jurisdiction over persons for the gravest crimes and has an international scope, in accordance with the present Statute.
Article 8, which supports the action of the Court, takes as reference the actions:
“The Court shall have jurisdiction in respect of war crimes in particular when committed as part of a plan or policy or as part of a large-scale commission of such crimes”.
Once the objective is set – the absence of impunity for war criminals - the Statute pursues the crimes of individuals, and not those of states, and defines the jurisdiction in relation to the actions and not in relation to the quality of the persons. In particular, the Statute tries to see to it that the jurisdiction of the Court is not limited by the pretext that the criminal acts are actions of citizens of the states which are not party to the Statute.
The Court has applied this rule in the case of Darfur, undertaking the processes from the denunciation of the Security Council against a responsible person of a state that is not party to the Statute.
When those responsible are not identified, the denunciations shall be made on the basis of the actions and the investigation will determine who are the persons to be prosecuted. Only on this point, the question of nationality of the persons shall be raised, and according to the nationality of the persons, the Court can evaluate its competence to judge.
3.1.2.2. Two descriptions
3.1.2.2.1. Definition of war crimes
Article 8 of the Statute defines the concept of "war crime".
In the first place, it involves the grave infractions of the Geneva Conventions of August 1949 (Article 147), namely “any of the following acts, if committed against persons or property protected by the present Convention”:
«) Wilful killing;
(…)
"iii) wilfully causing great suffering or serious injury to body or health;
"iv) extensive destruction and appropriation of property, not justified by military necessity and carried out unlawfully and wantonly»
The Statute makes it more precise.
Thus the other "serious violations of the laws and customs applicable in international armed conflicts" are considered as war crimes within the established framework of international law, namely, and Article 8 cites in particular:
a) Grave breaches of the Geneva Conventions of 12 August 1949, namely, any of the following acts against persons or property protected under the provisions of the relevant Geneva Convention:
iv) Extensive destruction and appropriation of property not justified by military necessity, and carried out unlawfully and wantonly.
b) Other serious violations, breaches of the law, and customs applicable in international armed conflicts within the established framework of international law, namely, any of the following acts:
i) Intentionally directing attacks against the civilian population as such or against individual civilians not taking direct part in hostilities;
ii) Intentionally directing attacks against civilian objects, namely, objects which are not military objectives;
iii) Intentionally directing attacks against personnel, installations, material, units or vehicles involved in a humanitarian assistance or peacekeeping mission in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations, as long as they are entitled to the protection given to civilians or civilian objects under the international law of armed conflict;
iv) Intentionally launching an attack in the knowledge that such attack will cause incidental loss of life or injury to civilians or damage to civilian objects or widespread, long-term and severe damage to the natural environment which would be clearly excessive in relation to the concrete and direct overall military advantage expected;
v) Attacking or bombarding, by whatever means, towns, villages, dwellings or buildings which are undefended and which are not military objectives;
ix) Intentionally directing attacks against buildings dedicated to religion, education, art, science or charitable purposes, historic monuments, hospitals and places where the sick and wounded are collected, provided they are not military objectives;
xii) Declaring that no quarter will be given;
xxiv) Intentionally directing attacks against buildings, medical units and transport, and personnel using the distinctive emblems of the Geneva Conventions in conformity with international law;
xxv) Intentionally using starvation of civilians as a method of warfare by depriving them of objects indispensable to their survival, including wilfully impeding relief supplies as provided for under the Geneva Conventions;
These definitions are specified in the regulation of the Court titled "elements of the crimes".
They should be interpreted taking into account the reading of the other international texts, among them the 1977 additional Protocol I to the Geneva Conventions.
3.1.2.2.2. Definition of crimes against humanity
According to Article 7, "crimes against humanity" means any of the following acts when committed as part of a widespread or systematic attack directed against any civilian population, with knowledge of the attack.
3.1.3. The personal character of the prosecution
Article 25 establishes the individual criminal responsibility.
According to the first paragraph, the Court shall have jurisdiction over natural persons pursuant to the Statute.
The second paragraph establishes the conclusive principle:
"A person who commits a crime within the jurisdiction of the Court shall be individually responsible and liable for punishment in accordance with this Statute”.
It is possible to appeal to the tribunal because a war crime exists. The quality of the authors of the crime is no more than a secondary fact, and the identification of these persons is the proper object of the investigation. The accuser must act according to the deeds. To accept the contrary solution would lead to negation of the objectives established by the Statute, which are to combat the most serious crimes which "threaten the peace, security and well-being of the world”.
With regard to the material criterion, the Statute defines how personal responsibility should be established, in paragraph 3.
“In accordance with this Statute, a person shall be criminally responsible and liable for punishment for a crime within the jurisdiction of the Court if that person:
"a) Commits such crime, whether as an individual, jointly with another or through another person, regardless of whether or not that other person is criminally responsible;
"b) Orders, solicits or induces the commission of such a crime which in fact occurs or is attempted;
"c) For the purpose of facilitating the commission of such a crime, aids, abets or otherwise assists in the commission or its attempted commission including providing the means for its commission;
"d) In any other way contributes to the commission or attempted commission of such a crime by a group of persons acting with a common purpose. Such contribution shall be intentional and shall either:
"i) be made with the aim of furthering the criminal activity or criminal purpose of the group, where such activity or purpose involves the commission or a crime within the jurisdiction of the Court; or
"ii) Be made in the knowledge of the intention of the group to commit the crime”.
Thus the actions before the ICC have as their objective not only the state leaders but also all those who have participated in an effective way in the commission of acts of war. Israel is included in this perspective for having withdrawn the names of the generals from the pages of the Internet, once the aggression was finished.
This fact is interesting, because it makes it possible to point out the authors of the crimes on a broader scale, which justifies an investigation.
In fact, only the investigation will make it possible to establish among the authors of these crimes those who, in having dual nationality, belongs to a state which is party to the treaty which constitutes the ICC.
3.1.4. The initiation of the prosecution
3.1.4.1. Denunciation by the Security Council (Articles 12 and 13 b)
The Security Council may call on the International Criminal Court with reference to the crimes that occurred in the territory of a state which is not party to this Statute or committed by the citizens of the state. This authority of having recourse to the Court on the part of the Security Council, subsequent to the demand of a state, is defined in Articles 12 and 13b.
The Security Council can have recourse to the Court within the framework of chapter VII of the Charter of the United Nations, which means, "Action with respect to threats to the peace, breaches of the peace, and acts of aggression”.
The objective of this provision is to exclude any possibility of impunity when crimes of war are the grounds.
These provisions can be applied against responsible political leaders of a state which is not a signatory of the Statute (the case of Darfur).
3.1.4.2. Denunciation of the states which are signatories of the Statute (Article 14)
Every state party may have recourse directly to the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court.
1. Every state party can refer to the Prosecutor a situation in which it appears that one or several crimes within the jurisdiction of the Court have been committed, and request the Prosecutor to investigate the situation with the aim of determining whether it is necessary to accuse one or several specific persons of having committed such crimes.
2. To the extent that it is possible, when a situation is referred to the Prosecutor, the pertinent circumstances shall be specified and supporting documentation shall be included which the accusing state has at its disposal.
The preamble creates an obligation for the states and Article 14 specifies the procedure. The denunciation of the actions is an obligation, while the estimation of their pertinence is the jurisdiction of the Court and, in the given case, of the Security Council. Depending on these elements, the Prosecutor, in accordance with Article 53, shall evaluate the data that have been presented and shall open an investigation, unless it is concluded that there is not a "reasonable basis" to proceed by virtue of this Statute.
These provisions have been applied in three cases: Uganda, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Central African Republic.
3.1.4.3. Report of information before the Prosecutor (Article 15)
In accordance with Article 15, the Prosecutor can officially initiate an investigation, on his or her own initiative, on the basis of the information concerning a crime within the jurisdiction of the Court.
Article 15.1 permits any person to denounce actions before the Prosecutor, requesting that he or she open an investigation.
Thus a non-signatory state can denounce actions before the Prosecutor.
It is the same with the Palestinian Authority and all non-governmental organizations. What matters is the basis of the denunciation.
Obviously this denunciation shall be strengthened if a state party appeals directly to the Prosecutor by virtue of Article 14. The extreme seriousness of the actions justifies these state interventions; it involves the fate of the victims or the consequences of these acts for international relations and world peace.
In accordance with Article 15.2, the prosecutor shall confirm the veracity of the information received. With this aim, he or she may seek additional information from States, organs of the United Nations, intergovernmental or non-governmental organizations, or other reliable sources that he or she deems appropriate, and may receive written or oral testimony at the seat of the Court.
In conformity with Article 15, if he or she reaches the conclusion that there is a sufficient basis to open an investigation, he or she shall submit to the Pre-Trial Chamber a request for authorization for this, together with the supporting documentation which has been collected. The victims may make representations to the Pre-Trial Chamber, in accordance with the Rules of Procedure and Evidence.
If he or she considers, after examining the request, that there is a sufficient basis for opening an investigation, the Pre-Trial Chamber shall give its authorization.
3.2. Proven actions
3.2.1. On the admissibility of the cause
In the application of Article 15, the signatories should transmit to the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court information about actions which have the characteristics of a war crime. If the accusation is not directed against specific persons, it passes directly to the jurisdiction of the Prosecutor and is admissible. The mission of the Prosecutor is to investigate on the basis of the actions (Article 54).
The petitioners point out that the Palestinian Authority itself has appealed to you within the framework of Article 15.1.
A state party, Bolivia, has already presented the accusation.
3.2.2. On the grounds of the accusation
3.2.2.1. On the general framework
These elements of fact and of law constitute a “reasonable basis” in accordance with Articles 15.3 and 53 of the Statute:
- On several occasions, the Secretary General of the UN has denounced the disproportion of this aggression, emphasizing that it is in conformity with justice to decide whether the actions constitute war crimes and, after his first visit to Gaza, affirmed that an investigation was necessary because Israel must be held accountable.
- The Palestinian Authority has denounced the actions as war crimes and has requested an investigation on the basis of Article 15.1. Bolivia, a state party, has presented an accusation.
- Five countries that are members of the Security Council, the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, South Africa, Indonesia, Vietnam, Costa Rica, and Egypt, as well as the Permanent Observer of the League of Arab States at the United Nations, have expressly denounced the violation of international humanitarian law.
- The crimes defined in Article 147 of the Geneva Convention, and specified in Article 8 of the Statute of Rome of 1998, refer to those committed in times of war, in a form that in no way can be justified by referring to violations that have been suffered.
- The human balance is alarming and the first testimonies indicate the lack of discretion in the attacks by the Israeli army.
- Some NGOs have officially denounced the use of prohibited weapons.
- The numerous human losses and the massive destruction inflicted on a population weakened by a blockade imposed by Israel are not proportionate to the alleged objective of restoring order. The real objective is the destruction of Palestinian society, which in itself is a war crime.
- The absence of a diplomatic objective is all the more flagrant inasmuch as the State of Israel does not have the capacity to make such decisions. In fact, its prime minister is in a situation of resignation because of corruption and the political forces have been incapable of forming a coalition. This war is an electoral argument.
- Given the fact that the territory of Gaza has been declared officially "territory occupied” by Israel, this state is obligated to respect the 4th Geneva Convention. It deals with occupied territories in an illegitimate manner by means of military action, in violation of Article 2.4 of the Charter of the United Nations, which prohibits the use of force in international relations, and Article 1.2, which affirms the rights of peoples. This war prolongs the aggression which represents the blockade of the Gaza Strip for many months, violating the foundations of international law and human rights.
The facts are clear from the testimonies in situ extracted from the information given by the press and the organizations present in the zone, information that has been totally sanctioned by the states and the international organizations.
It has been sent to many delegations in the zone and all concur with the first elements collected.
In particular, during the Security Council debate, when Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said that the response was disproportionate, five states that are members of the Security Council directly denounced the violations of international humanitarian law. The president of the General Assembly of the United Nations described the actions as genocide.
3.2.2.2. On the description of the actions (crimes of war and crimes against humanity)
The actions established by the information or the declarations of responsible officials of the UN, as well as by the NGOs, the press, and the eyewitnesses, make it possible to establish various facts which correspond to the categories envisioned by Articles 7 and 8 of the Statute.
The actions are analyzed as follows in accordance with Article 8 (war crimes), but their systematic nature makes it possible to accept as a point of investigation the description of crimes against humanity (Article 7).
The actions that are presented here are only the first indications and will be developed in the subsequent statements, attached to the supporting documentation.
a) Grave breaches of the Geneva Convention of 12 August 1949, namely any of the following acts against persons or property protected by the provisions of the pertinent Geneva Convention:
“iv) Extensive destruction and appropriation of property, not justified by military necessity and carried out unlawfully and wantonly”.
The destruction caused by the Israeli military attacks throughout the whole of the territory of the Gaza Strip was the result of military operations on land, sea and in the air, on a large scale. These repeated attacks destroyed buildings such as dwellings, houses, workshops, and businesses, many vehicles, warehouses, cafes, and garages.
b) Other serious violations of the laws and customs applicable in international armed conflicts within the framework established by international law, namely, any of the following acts:
“i) Intentionally directing attacks against the civilian population as such or against individual civilians not taking direct part in the hostilities;”
Among the victims there are children, women and men. The vast majority of them were not combatants, among others, an imam, a doctor, a nurse, a lawyer… the majority of the bodies were completely dismembered by the violence of the bombardments.
On 9 January, shots were fired directly at the building where the communications media were working, whose coordinates the Israeli army knew perfectly well, with the result that a journalist was wounded.
See: testimonies on the Internet page of B’tselem.
“ii) Intentionally directing attacks against civilian objects, namely, objects which are not military objectives;”
In particular, the following were destroyed:
- governmental buildings,
- local stations of the Jawal telephone company,
- police stations,
- a sports club,
- the information office of the Committees of Popular Resistance,
- the building of the department of agricultural inspection, training centres of the security services,
- the naval police post,
- the Arafat police centre,
- the principal centre of the al-Saraya internal security,
- the building of al-Aqsa television,
- several squares in the city centre or in villages,
- the prison situated right in the centre of Gaza City,
- the gas reserves, which implies the closure of the central electrical stations,
- factories.
“iii) Intentionally directing attacks against personnel, installations, material, units or vehicles involved in a humanitarian assistance or peacekeeping mission in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations, as long as they are entitled to the protection given to civilians or civilian objects under the international law of armed conflict;"
The following actions have been established:
- 7 January: bombardment of four schools operated by the UNRWA. The responsible officials of this agency provided the Israeli army with the exact coordinates of these schools. More than 40 people were killed.
- 8 January: shots were fired at UN convoys with humanitarian aid (food and medical supplies), resulting in two deaths.
“iv) Intentionally launching an attack in the knowledge that such attack will cause incidental loss of life or injury to civilians or damage to civilian objects or widespread, long-term and severe damage to the natural environment which would be clearly excessive in relation to the concrete and direct overall military advantage expected;"
The following actions have been established:
- Incursions have been made, producing sonic booms, which have caused traumas and a climate of panic among the inhabitants of Gaza;
- The use of GBU 39 "smart bombs" with depleted uranium;
- The selective assassinations, among others, the one perpetrated on Thursday, 1 January, against one of the main leaders of Hamas, Nizar Rayan, in the north of the Gaza Strip. Israel even had the arrogance to warn Nizar Rayan himself that the army intended to assassinate him, and in order that it be "clean", advised him to leave the house where about twenty people were present. 15 of them died. This "live" assassination was committed with the legal support of the government legal adviser, Benahem Mazuz;
- Also on Tuesday, 30 December, during the bombing of the complex of ministries of the Islamist movement, the Israeli army struck 22 inhabitants;
- These measures are intended to sow terror among the population and their aim is to apply a systematic strategy of collective punishment and terrorism. Responsible Israeli officials know perfectly well that these operations will cause excessive damage, the deaths of civilians and will cause injuries to part of the population as well as major harm, severe and long-lasting, to the natural environment, which is clearly excessive in relation to the specific and direct military advantages that are envisaged.
"v) Attacking or bombarding, by whatever means, towns, villages, dwellings or buildings which are undefended and which are not military objectives;"
"ix) Intentionally directing attacks against buildings dedicated to religion, education, art, science or charitable purposes, historic monuments, hospitals and places where the sick and wounded are collected, provided they are not military objectives;"
The following were destroyed:
- More than ten mosques;
- The Islamic University of Gaza (IUG);
- Some schools which nevertheless enjoy the protection of international humanitarian law -- protection sanctioned by the additional protocol, Articles 52 and 57 -- and which, not even in case of doubt, can be taken as military objectives. (Article 52-3). The schools cannot be considered military objectives because attacking them cannot give any military advantages to the Israeli combatants;
- The offices of the Wa'ed prisoners association;
- The offices of Islamic Aid;
"xii) Declaring that no quarter will be given;"
On this point reference is made to:
- Ehud Barak's declaration;
- Tzipi Livni's declaration;
- Declarations of the spokesmen of the army and the government;
“xxiv) Intentionally directing attacks against buildings, medical units and transport, and personnel using the distinctive emblems of the Geneva Conventions in conformity with international law;"
These have been confirmed:
- Shots by the Israeli army against rescue workers and ambulances while they tried to attend to the wounded and to evacuate the bodies, action recorded on 14 January.
"xxv) Intentionally using starvation of civilians as a method of warfare by depriving them of objects indispensable to their survival, including wilfully impeding relief supplies as provided for under the Geneva Conventions;"
- A million and a half inhabitants of Gaza have lived under the Israeli blockade since June 2007. Various calls by some states for the lifting of the blockade, as well as those of civil society, have been worthless paper. Since 29 December only about a hundred trucks have been allowed to pass through. The inhabitants of the Gaza Strip lack everything, food, basic necessities, also fuel, gas, and electricity. The hospitals cannot give necessary care to the wounded and sick because of lack of materials.
3.2.3. On the urgency, related to the flagrancy of the crime
An urgent action will facilitate the gathering of the proof, the disappearance of which has been facilitated too frequently by the slow pace of international justice.
3.2.4. On the pertinence
Justice must respond to the violence. From the perspective of a global order, the appeal to justice will be a message of universal importance.
The objective is to achieve peace. This implies the condemnation of the actions that are so serious that they imply a threat to international relations.
A denunciation must be presented (Preamble) as soon as it is known that war crimes have been committed, characterized in this case by the disproportion of the attack and the massive civilian losses that it has caused.
The examination of the pertinence, which is the responsibility of the Court, is a duty without any reservations.
If in the future the process is revealed to be a real obstacle to the signing of a universal peace, the Security Council, in applying Article 16, can suspend it.
The initiation of the process will be a signal of great importance for the populations who are victims of these crimes. It will strengthen the authority of the International Criminal Court in showing that its operations can be applied to the economic and military powers.
4. Documents
UNITED NATIONS:
Press conference of the Under-Secretary General for Humanitarian Affairs and of the Director of UNRWA Operations in GAZA 20/1/09:
http://www.un.org/News/fr-press/docs/2009/Conf090120-GING.doc.htm
Ban Ki-moon on his visit to Gaza and Israel after the announcement of the cease fire of 20 January 2009:
http://www.un.org/apps/newsFr/storyF.asp?NewsID=18233&Cr=Israë&Cr1=Palestiniens
Daily press conference of the Office of the Spokesman of the Secretary General of the UN, 20 January 2009:
http://www.un.org/News/fr-press/docs/2009/dbf090120.doc.htm
UNRWA:
Declarations of the Secretary General of the UN of 17 January:
http://www.un.org/News/fr-press/docs/2009/SGSM12049.doc.htm
UNRWA (photographs):
http://www.un.org/unrwa/news/statements/gaza_crisis/photo_gallery/index.html
Declarations of the Secretary General of the UN SG/SM/12044:
12 January 2009 - Ban Ki-moon considers that it is the task of the International Criminal Court (ICC) and other international organizations to establish whether the aggressions committed in Gaza could represent "war crimes".
http://www.un.org/News/fr-press/docs/2009/SGSM12044.doc.htm
The Secretary General of the UN on his visit to Gaza:
13 January 2009 - The Secretary General of the UN, Ban Ki-moon, had to fly on Tuesday to the Middle East in order to accelerate the diplomatic efforts aimed at securing a cease-fire in Gaza, where the combat continued on the 18th day of the Israeli military offensive against the Palestinian movement Hamas.
http://www.un.org/apps/newsFr/storyF.asp?NewsID=18181&Cr=Israë&Cr1=Palestiniens
United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child:
13 January 2009 - The United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child was deeply disturbed by the devastating effects which the current military operations in Gaza have on the children.
http://www.un.org/apps/newsFr/storyF.asp?NewsID=18177&Cr=Israë&Cr1=Palestiniens
Investigations by the Human Rights Council:
12 January 2009 - The Human Rights Council of the United Nations decided on Monday to send an international, independent mission with the task of investigating the violations of human rights committed by Israel in Gaza, after an extraordinary session devoted to the situation in the Palestinian territory, where the Israeli army has been conducting a military offensive for more than two weeks.
http://www.un.org/apps/newsFr/storyF.asp?NewsID=18167&Cr=Israë&Cr1=Palestiniens
Human Right Council, Extraordinary Session of 9 January 2009:
http://www.droitshumains.org/ONU_GE/conseilddh/09/gaza_debat01.htm
http://www.droitshumains.org/ONU_GE/conseilddh/09/gaza_debat02.htm
Resolution of the Human Rights Council of 12 January 2009:
http://www.droitshumains.org/ONU_GE/conseilddh/09/gaza_resol_cons1.htm
Intervention of the national human rights institutions and non-governmental organizations in the Human Rights Council, 12 January 2009:
http://www.droitshumains.org/ONU_GE/conseilddh/09/gaza_debat03.htm
UNESCO:
12 January 2009 - On Monday, the Director General of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, Koihiro Matsuura, deplored the attacks perpetrated in Gaza against installations belonging to the communications media and the death of the Palestinian journalist Basel Faraj, who died on 6 January as a consequence of the wounds received while carrying out his duties.
http://www.un.org/apps/newsFr/storyF.asp?NewsID=18166&Cr=Israë&Cr1=Palestiniens
United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights:
9 January 2009 - Appearing before the Human Rights Council, which met on Friday in Geneva to deal with the situation in Gaza, Navi Pillay, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, requested an investigation of the violations of human rights in the occupied Palestinian territory.
Navi Pillay described the situation as intolerable and called for the cease-fire, which the Security Council urged on Thursday in New York, to be put into effect immediately, according to a communique.
http://www.un.org/apps/newsFr/storyF.asp?NewsID=18158&Cr=Isra%EBl&Cr1=Palestiniens
UNESCO:
7 January 2009 – On Wednesday, he Director General of UNESCO, Koïhiro Matsuura, and the Special Representative of the Secretary General of the UN for Children and Armed Conflicts, Radhika Coomaraswamy, expressed their profound concern, caused by the recent attacks on United Nations schools and installations in Gaza.
http://www.un.org/apps/newsFr/storyF.asp?NewsID=18137&Cr=Isra%C3%ABl&Cr1=Palestiniens
UN – Attack on a school:
6 January 2009 - The explosion of Israeli mortar shells that fell on Tuesday on a UN school near the Jabaliya camp in Gaza caused at least 30 deaths and wounded 50, an attack vehemently condemned by the Secretary General of the United Nations, Ban Ki-moon.
http://www.un.org/apps/newsFr/storyF.asp?NewsID=18131&Cr=Israë&Cr1=Palestiniens
OFFICE FOR THE COORDINATION OF HUMANITARIAN AFFAIRS:
Protection of civilians weekly report. (Zeitun Killings) (1-8 January 2009)
High Commissioner for Refugees:
6 January 2009 – The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Antonio Gutierres, issued a call this week for respect for humanitarian principles, within the framework of the Gaza conflict, including the respect for universal rights of persons fleeing the war and seeking protection in other states.
http://www.un.org/apps/newsFr/storyF.asp?NewsID=18125&Cr=Israë&Cr1=Palestiniens
Urgent attention to the population and to children:
5 January 2009 – On Monday, the UN humanitarian official responsible for Gaza demanded a period of respite to permit the provision of supplies to the population, to gain access to the wounded, and to re-establish electrical power in the Palestinian territory, pressed by an armed conflict between Israel and Hamas for more than a week.
Maxwell Gaylard, United Nations Humanitarian Coordinator for the Occupied Palestinian Territory, alluding to a “climate of fear”, the numerous families who are suffering from hunger and cold, and who have no electricity, nor running water, stated in a press conference that from every point of view, one must speak of a humanitarian crisis in Gaza, where the population is caught in a trap.
http://www.un.org/apps/newsFr/storyF.asp?NewsID=18118&Cr=Israë&Cr1=Palestiniens
Security Council, 31 December 2008 (CS/9560):
Ban Ki-moon, Secretary General of the UN, condemned Hamas' attacks against Israel, but on referring to Israel's reaction, he used the expression “disproportionate use of force”.
Given that it is a civilian population that is involved, Ban Ki-moon described the people of Gaza as “terrorized” and explained that the Israeli attacks “have also struck houses, mosques, and businesses”.
Five countries that are members of the Security Council, the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, South Africa, Indonesia, Vietnam, Costa Rica, and Egypt, as well as the Permanent Observer of the League of Arab States at the United Nations, expressly denounced the violation of international humanitarian law.
http://www.un.org/News/fr-press/docs/2008/CS9560.doc.htm
Press conference of John Holmes, Under-Secretary General for Humanitarian Affairs and United Nations Coordinator of Emergency Aid, and Karen Koning AbuZayd, General Commissioner of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees in the Near East, (UNRWA), who participated by way of a video conference from Gaza on 31 December 2008:
John Holmes, after describing this military operation as “especially lethal and bloody”, pointed out that the hospitals of Gaza were at a low ebb: “What complicates the job of the hospital personnel is the cutoffs of lights, because of the lack of fuel”. John Holmes explained that the Gaza central electrical station had ceased to function and this shutdown had left about 650,000 Gazans in the dark for approximately 16 hours per day, and had made difficult the functioning of public infrastructure.
For her part, Karen Koning AbuZayd declared that “Although hunger is not yet a phenomenon widely spread across the territory, the fact is that the inhabitants of Gaza cannot eat as they should". She also explained that for the first time since being present in the zone, the UNRWA had requested that large quantities of candles be sent, in order to ameliorate the lack of electricity and alleviate the psychological suffering of the Gaza residents.
http://www.un.org/News/fr-press/docs/2008/Conf081231-HOLMES.doc.htm
Declarations of Ban Ki-moon, Secretary General of the UN, 27 December 2008 (SG/SM/12025):
The Secretary General of the UN showed his anxiety about “the excess of the violence and the bloodbath that is occurring in Gaza” and declared that “although he recognized Israel's concern for its security because of the continued launching of rockets from Gaza” he reiterated “firmly, Israel's obligation to respect international humanitarian law and the norms that govern human rights” and condemned the excessive use of force which is causing deaths and injuries among civilians.
http://www.un.org/News/fr-press/docs/2008/SGSM12025.doc.htm
ICRC:
Communique of theICRC of 20/01/09:
http://www.icrc.org/web/fre/sitefre0.nsf/html/palestine-update-200109?opendocument
Munitions with phosphorus - the viewpoint of the CICR:
http://www.icrc.org/web/fre/sitefre0.nsf/html/weapons-interview-170109
WHO:
Communique of the WHO: Health situation in Gaza – 17 – 18 January 2009:
http://www.who.int/hac/crises/international/wbgs/sitreps/gaza_17_18jan2009/en/index.html
Communique of the WHO: the WHO deplores the bombing of the hospitals in Gaza:
http://www.who.int/mediacentre/news/statements/2009/Gaza-health-20090115/fr/index.html
WHO:
8 January 2009 - The Gaza health services, already weakened, are on the verge of collapse if no immediate steps are taken to reinforce them and preserve them, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).
http://www.un.org/apps/newsFr/storyF.asp?NewsID=18150&Cr=Israë&Cr1=Palestiniens
WHO:
7 January 2009 – The Gaza health services on the verge of collapse (7 January)
http://www.who.int/mediacentre/news/statements/2009/Gaza-health-20090107/fr/index.htmlhttp://www.who.int/mediacentre/news/statements/2009/Gaza-health-20090107/fr/index.htmlhttp://www.who.int/mediacentre/news/statements/2009/Gaza-health-20090107/fr/index.html
UNICEF:
16 January – Gaza: the children cannot go anywhere:
The bombing of the United Nations warehouses has serious effects on the aid, but UNICEF does not stop its efforts in the areas of health care, water, nutrition, and education.
http://www.unicef.fr/accueil/sur-le-terrain/pays/moyen-orient-et-afrique-du-nord/territoires-palestiniens/var/lang/FR/rub/327/articles/7092.html
12 January – The number of victims among the children continues to mount in Gaza:
“At this time there is no place in Gaza where the children and their families can protect themselves”, reported Patricia Phillips, the UNICEF representative in the occupied Palestinian territories. Of the 758 Palestinians killed since 27 December, 257 are children. Another 1080 have been wounded.
http://www.unicef.fr/accueil/sur-le-terrain/pays/moyen-orient-et-afrique-du-nord/territoires-palestiniens/var/lang/FR/rub/327/articles/7073.html
7 January – A terrible impact on the children of Gaza:
http://www.unicef.fr/accueil/sur-le-terrain/pays/moyen-orient-et-afrique-du-nord/territoires-palestiniens/var/lang/FR/rub/327/articles/7070.html
6 January – Gaza: Stop the violence so that the aid services can move around:
http://www.unicef.fr/accueil/sur-le-terrain/pays/moyen-orient-et-afrique-du-nord/territoires-palestiniens/var/lang/FR/rub/327/articles/7063.html
HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH:
13 January 2009- Human Rights Watch report:
http://www.hrw.org/en/news/2009/01/12/deprived-and-endangered-humanitarian-crisis-gaza-strip
16 January 2009 - Israel: Stop shelling crowded Gaza city:
http://www.hrw.org/en/news/2009/01/16/israel-stop-shelling-crowded-gaza-city
Participation by K. Roth: CNN, 17 January 2009:
http://edition.cnn.com/video/#/video/world/2009/01/17/intv.roth.white.phos.cnn?iref=videosearch
AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL:
19 January 2009 - The Amnesty International team enters the Gaza Strip (19.01.09):
http://www.amnesty.org/fr/news-and-updates/news/amnesty-international-team-gains-access-gaza-20090119
21 January 2009 - Gaza: The evidence of war crimes:
http://www.amnesty.fr/index.php/amnesty/s_informer/actualites/gaza_et_israel_proteger_les_civils
PRESS:
The President of the General Assembly of the United Nations denounces the genocide:
14 January 2009 - The President of the UN General Assembly has condemned Israel's killings of Palestinians in its Gaza offensive as "genocide".
Miguel d'Escoto Brockmann also told Al Jazeera he had never believed that the UN Security Council would be able to stop the violence in Gaza and that Ehud Olmert, the Israeli prime minister, had practically told the UN to "mind their own business" by continuing the offensive.
http://english.aljazeera.net/news/americas/2009/01/200911321467988347.html
Israel prepares for judicial actions.
Israel takes punitive actions against its generals.
"Le Temps", Serge Dumont - Wednesday 14 January 2009:
“We are considering all the possibilities”. On Monday, the Attorney General of Israel and Governmental Legal Adviser, Menny Mazuz, recognized that the responsible state officials had expected an avalanche of denunciations of war crimes since they ended the "Cast Lead" operation. As for the Vice-Minister for Foreign Affairs, Majali Wahabeh, he indicated that his country would have more to fear from the denunciations presented by NGOs before the judiciary of his country than those of the international criminal courts.
http://www.letemps.ch/template/tempsFort.asp?page=3&article=247725
CNN 12 January 2009:
http://edition.cnn.com/video/#/video/world/2009/01/12/wedeman.gaza.israel.phosphorus.cnn
Questions about the weapons used:
Two Norwegian doctors affirm having seen in a Gaza City hospital “victims of a new type of weapon, the DIME”.
For the newspaper "Le Temps", Sophie Shibab, special envoy in Al-Arish (Egypt) - Tuesday, 13 January 2009:
A new type of wound has appeared in the last few days on Arabic television channels that broadcast from Gaza - adults and children whose legs are burned and bleeding only in certain parts. On Sunday, there were two Norwegian doctors, the only Westerners present in the city hospital, who gave testimony about it.
http://www.letemps.ch/template/international.asp?page=4&article=247689
A document is attached which is a first summary.
* * *
This denunciation describes the general elements that, by themselves, represent a reasonable basis for initiating an investigation.
But the signatory associations indicate that they have sent study groups to Gaza – lawyers, forensic medical workers, weapons specialists, psychologists -- who in the next few days can bring in additional elements, especially concerning the reality of the military orders given and the abuses committed.
This denunciation, apart from its immediate effects, contributes to the construction of international humanitarian law.
For all these reasons, those who make the accusations have the honor of appealing to the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court of The Hague, in applying Article 15.1 of the Statute of Rome of 17 July 1998 by which the International Criminal Court was established in The Hague.
Which is just and right,
In Paris, February 2009
Participating associations, as of 19/1/2009
A2C
ACLEFEU, Clichy-sous-Bois
Adameer pour les Droits de l’Homme, Gaza
Afamia, Vanves
Agir pour la Citoyenneté
AIC, Alternative Information Center, Jerusalem
Al Houda, Association des Femmes Musulmanes de Rennes
Alliance de la Jeunesse contre le Racisme, l’Exclusion et la Violence
Alliance for Freedom and Dignity
Alliance zapatiste de libération sociale, Carcassonne
Al Mezan pour le droits de l’homme, Gaza
Apostolat-Associatif, Saint Feliu-d'Avall
Arab Center for Independence of the Judiciary and the Legal Profession (ACIJLP), Cairo
Artists Against War Italia - Rete Artisti contro le guerre Italia - Associazione Argon
As-Salam, L’Isle d’Abeau
Association CREF, Perpignan
Association Culturelle Arabo-Turque de l'Ensoleillé, Perpignan
Association Culturelle et Islamique Es-Salam, Lyon
Association culturelle et sportive des Turcs de Beaurepaire
Association Culturelle Musulmane (A.C.M.) Savigny le Temple
Association de Solidarité Franco-arabe
Association de Solidarité Tourcoing Rafah (A.S.T.R.)
Association des Amis du Collectif des Musulmans de France
Association des Mineurs Marocains du Nord-Pas-de-Calais, Dechy
Association France-Palestine Solidarité Paris Sud, AFPS Paris Sud
Association Franco -Turque d’Avignon
Association Internationale pour la Préservation du Patrimoine Palestinien (AIPPP), Souffelweyersheim
Association Jeunesse Energie Avignonnaise
Association Jeunesse Musulmane Française, Grigny
Association A la découverte de l’islam, Marseille
Association musulmane d’Elne
Association pour les jumelages entre les camps de réfugiés Palestiniens et les villes Françaises, Montataire
Association Troubadours, Paris
ASTI 66 (Association de Solidarité avec les Travailleurs et travailleuses Immigrés), Perpignan
Avocats pour la Justice au Proche-Orient, Paris
Bahrain Human Rights Society, Manama
Bel-agir, Paris
Brussells Tribunal
Bureau International des ONG Humanitaires, Genève
Campagne Civile Internationale pour la Protection du Peuple Palestinien
CAPJPO - EuroPalestine, Paris
CDRPE - Collectif pour le Droit et le Respect des Parents d'Elèves, Nanterre
Centre arabe pour l’indépendance de la justice et de la magistrature
Centre arabe pour la documentation et la poursuite judiciaire des criminels de guerre (Beirut and Cairo)
Centre Marocain de droits Humains, Rabat
CEOSI, Campaña Estatal contra la Ocupación y por la Soberanía de Iraq, (Spain)
Clarté
Collectif de soutien au peuple Palestinien, Lyon
Collectif Judé Arabe et Citoyen pour la Paix, Strasbourg
Collectif Fraternité Perpignan
Collectif Palestine 69
Combat Communiste, Nogent s/ Marne
Comitée Coordination des Association Franco-Turques, Lyon
Comitée Jumelage Bages-Jalboun, Bages
Comité de lutte contre la barbarie et l'arbitraire, La Tour d’Aigues
Comité Palestine 81, ALBI
Comité pour une Paix Juste au Proche-Orient, Luxembourg
Comité Saintonge Palestine, Saintes
Commission arabe des droits humains (ACHR)
Conférence Islamique Européenne (EIC/CIE)
Confluences, Marseille
Convergence des causes
Coordination contre la racisme et l’islamophobie
Coordination Nationale des Collectifs Unitaires
Coup de Pouce Santé Vaulx-en-Velin
Coordinamento Progetto Eurasia (Italia)
Coup de Soleil des Pyrénés-Orientales, Perpignan
Damascus Center for Theoretical Studies and Civil Rights (Sweden)
Emergence, Carrièes-sous-Poissy
Ensemble pour un Meilleur Avenir, Nevers
Esprit Libre, Béiers
Etudiants musulmans de France-Lyon, Villeurbanne
Expression Musulmane, Perpignan
Farrah France, Sousffelweyersheim
Fédération Nationale des Musulmans de France (FNMF)
Femmes en noir, Marseille
Femmes Solidaires 66
Forum International pour le Dialogue des Civilisations, Lyon
France Palestine Solidarité 6, Perpignan
France Palestine Solidarité Toulouse
Fédération tunisienne des citoyens des deux rives
Friddensinitiativ Lëzebuerg a.s.b.l, Cruchten
Génération Palestine
Génération Palestine-Lyon Campus Initiatives Lyon
Hisham Mobarak Center for Law (Aswan-Egypt)
Hors les Murs Ici et Ailleurs, Lille
Initiativ’emploi et citoyenneté Roubaix
International Solidarity Movement, Ramallah, West Bank, and the French section
Jeunes d’Europe pour le droit, la paix et la solidarité (JEDPS)
Justitia Universalis, La Haye (Netherlands)
Kiwi Conseil, Lyon
La Rencontre Culturelle Euro Arabe, Paris
LCR 66, Perpignan
Le Citoyen, Grigny
Les Amis de Jayyous, Brive
Les amis du Collectif des Musulmans de France
Les Rouilleurs, Sainte-Foy les Lyon
Liberty Association for Human Rights (Kuwait)
Ligue algérienne de défense des droits de l'homme (LADDH)
Main dans la Main, Perpignan
Majo y Limpio, Canary Islands, Spain
Mouvement contre le racisme et pour l’amitié entre les peuples, Paris
Mouvement des Indigènes de la République, Paris
MRAP, Paris
Muslims Solidarité de Figuier (AMSF)
One Justice
Organisation arabe des droits de l’homme, Cairo
Palestine 24, La Force
Parti communiste libanais
Parti de la France plurielle, Sant Denis
Participation et Spiritualité musulmane
Place Publique, Maubeuge
Pôe de Renaissance Communiste En France, Villeneuve la Garenne
Pôe Ethique, Elne
PolitiCat 66, Perpignan
Porte-voix (collectif Palestine 11) Carcassonne
Protection of Human Rights Defenders in the Arab World
PSM Rhône Alpes, Véissieux
Rassemblement des Démocrates Libanais et Amis du Liban, Marseille
Rencontre culturelle Euro arabe
Réseaux citoyens de Saint-Etienne
Red de redes En Defensa de la Humanidad, capitulo Mexico, Réseau des Réseaux en Défense de l'Humanité, Chapitre Mexique
Salam, Lyon
Salam, Perpignan
Solidarité Féminine, Perpignan
Synergie 84
Syrian Center for Information (France)
Tlaxcala, réseau de traducteurs pour la diversité linguistique, Carcassonne
Tribunal-Iraque (Audience Portugaise du Tribunal Mondial sur l'Iraq)
UGTT : Union Générale des Travailleurs Tunisiens (Tunis)
Union démocratique arabe en France (UDAF)
Union des associations et amicales marocaines en France, Lyon
Union des avocats arabes
Union des Jeunes Musulmans, Lyon
Union Juive Française pour la Paix
Union Syndicale Solidaires 66
Vivre Ensemble
Voie de l’Eloquence, Déines
Voix libre
If you want to join this complaint, please fill this, copy and send it to gilles.devers@wanadoo.fr
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Power of representation before the court
This power is granted exclusively to the lawyer.
(The name of the representative and the e-mail address shall not be communicated to anyone.)
Name of the association, NGO, or group:
Represented by:
With registered office in:
E-mail address:
The power of representation before the court is granted to the lawyer Gilles Devers, member of the bar of Lyon, 22 rue Constantine, 69001 LYON, fax (0033) 4 72 98 11 09, e-mail address: gilles.devers@wanadoo.fr, so that he can initiate every kind of legal proceedings in order that the International Criminal Court judge the war crimes committed in Gaza beginning from 27 December 2008.
Signed: (seal, electronic signature or scanned signature)
All data bearing individuals' names and e-mail addresses are confidential. |
on the list of war crimes that might have been committed by the Israeli forces will depend on whether the Gaza offensive is an international armed conflict or an armed conflict not of an international character. When we assume this is an internal conflict (because Israel has jurisdiction over the Occupied Territories) there could be a list of probable war crimes. 
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