TEHRAN – The war in Gaza, which erupted on October 7, 2023, has become a defining crisis of our time — not only for its staggering human toll, but for what it reveals about the erosion of ethical boundaries in modern warfare. More than 69,000 Palestinians have been killed, many of them women and children. Despite a ceasefire announced last month, Israeli military operations have continued unabated. What began as a response to a Hamas attack has evolved into a campaign that many international observers now describe as genocidal.

Recent reporting by The Guardian, based on the ITV documentary Breaking Ranks: Inside Israel’s War, offers rare insight into the war’s inner workings — not from external critics, but from Israeli soldiers themselves. Their testimonies expose a culture of impunity, where civilians were killed arbitrarily, homes destroyed without justification, and human shields used as tactical tools. These confessions are not only morally damning; they are legally incriminating.

Soldiers interviewed in Breaking Ranks describe Gaza as a free-for-all, where the rules of engagement were replaced by suspicion and personal discretion. Civilians were shot for walking too fast or too slow. Aid seekers were gunned down at food distribution sites. One soldier recounts how a man hanging laundry was mistaken for a spotter and killed by a tank shell. Another describes the widespread use of Palestinian civilians as human shields.

These actions violate the Geneva Conventions and customary international humanitarian law, which prohibit targeting civilians, using human shields, and destroying civilian infrastructure without military necessity. The consistency of these violations suggests not isolated misconduct but a systemic breakdown of legal and ethical norms.

Genocide allegations and legal action

In September, the United Nations Independent International Commission of Inquiry concluded that Israel had committed genocide in Gaza. The commission cited incitement from Israeli leaders, including President Isaac Herzog, who declared that the entire Palestinian population bore responsibility for the October 7 attack. Such rhetoric, the UN argued, helped establish the intent required under the Genocide Convention.

The International Criminal Court (ICC) has since issued arrest warrants for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant. The charges include war crimes and crimes against humanity, such as starvation as a method of warfare and deliberate attacks on civilian infrastructure. These legal actions mark a turning point in global accountability for atrocities.

The GHF and the politics of humanitarianism

The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), backed by the United States and Israel, was created to provide aid during the conflict. Yet testimonies in Breaking Ranks describe GHF distribution sites as militarized zones where civilians were shot while seeking food. This undermines the foundation’s humanitarian mission and raises questions about U.S. complicity. By sponsoring GHF, the U.S. appears to be deflecting attention from its role in enabling Israel’s military campaign.

GHF’s presence became emblematic of a broader problem: the politicization of aid and the use of humanitarian infrastructure to mask military aggression. When food lines become kill zones, the moral failure is not just tactical — it is systemic.

A reckoning for Israel, allies

The war in Gaza has revealed not only the brutality of Israel’s military strategy but the fragility of international law when confronted with powerful state actors. The testimonies in Breaking Ranks, the findings of the UN, and the actions of the ICC converge on a single truth: Israel has committed war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide.

Justice demands more than condemnation. It demands accountability — for Israel, for its leaders, and for the international actors who have enabled this devastation. The time for reckoning is now.