TEHRAN – Gaza has been subjected to the harshest forms of collective punishment in modern history, measures that grossly violate international law and amount to war crimes.

After the October 7 operation in 2023, the occupying Israeli regime invaded the Strip and intensified its blockade. The renewed siege forced 2.4 million residents from their homes and imposed full control over the enclave’s air and sea access. 

The Zionist regime prevented humanitarian agencies from providing critical aid, contrary to Article 23 of the Fourth Geneva Convention. The interception of an international humanitarian flotilla carrying delegates from more than 40 countries, detaining the activists in international waters before interrogating and mistreating them further, reflects the regime’s disregard for international law. 

Humanitarian collapse

The widespread Israeli destruction across Gaza, including strikes on densely populated areas, cutting fuel and electricity from hospitals, clinics, and essential services, has resulted in severe medical crises. 

Thousands of children have been born with complications or disabilities due to the lack of care, and many patients, particularly children, have died slowly as power shortages cripple the remaining hospitals. Gaza’s humanitarian situation constitutes collective punishment, prohibited under international law.

Civilian protection under Geneva law

Articles 51 and 57 of the First Additional Protocol to the Geneva Conventions require parties to protect civilians from attack and prohibit threats intended to terrorize the population. 

Operations by Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) have led to catastrophic harm to children, women, and unarmed civilians. These actions amount to a pattern of conduct that constitutes genocide.

Article 57 also bars attacks on civilian areas as acts of reprisal. The International Criminal Court’s foundational documents classify such attacks as war crimes. 

UNRWA’s commissioner-general has stated that most casualties since October 7, 2023, have been civilians, with women and children accounting for roughly 70 percent of deaths, alongside others who died from hunger and deprivation.

Starvation as a method of warfare

The Zionist regime has been deliberately using starvation against civilians, prohibited under Article 54 of the First Additional Protocol. Article 76 also mandates special protection for women in conflict zones. IOF abuses against kidnapped women, particularly former staff at Gaza’s al-Shifa Hospital, are evidence of these violations.

Pregnant women at high risk

International organizations estimate that around 100,000 pregnant women in Gaza face acute danger from the collapse of health services. More than 1,000 miscarriages have occurred due to insufficient medical care, in violation of Article 16 of the Fourth Geneva Convention, which requires special protection for pregnant women.

Attacks on civilian infrastructure

The IOF has deliberately failed to distinguish between civilian and military objects, contrary to Article 8 of the First Additional Protocol and Rule 29 of customary international humanitarian law. 

Among the IOF targets have been hospitals, clinics, schools, mosques, churches, cultural sites, and heritage landmarks. International monitoring organizations report widespread destruction of Gaza’s health, education, electricity, water, and agricultural infrastructure, leaving residents without basic services even during ceasefires.

Forced displacement

The displacement of thousands of families since 2023 is a violation of Rule 129 of customary law and Article 49 of the Fourth Geneva Convention, which prohibit the forcible transfer of civilians within or outside occupied territory. 

Many Gaza families were pushed from their homes, lost essential documents, or were forced to remain in unsafe conditions without the ability to decide their own future.

Treatment of prisoners

More than 90 violations of detainee rights over the past two years have been documented. NGOs argue the number is much higher. Articles 13 and 14 of the Third Geneva Convention require humane treatment of prisoners of war. 

International reports, however, describe extremely harsh conditions for Palestinian detainees in Israeli prisons, including the death of prisoners under torture, and other incidents that have sparked global outrage.

Impunity and lack of accountability

These violations persist because perpetrators have not been held accountable before international courts. Principle I of the Nuremberg Charter states that individuals who commit crimes under international law “are responsible and liable to punishment,” yet the Israeli regime’s officials have been shielded from prosecution. 

While the International Criminal Court has opened files on the genocidal war, progress has been slow and ineffective.

Calls for international action

Rights groups have called for the mobilization of all legal and diplomatic tools to investigate and prosecute war crimes, including the creation of independent commissions or special courts, whether by the UN Security Council or a special tribunal for Palestine.

They have urged governments and international organizations to halt an ongoing genocide, restore Palestinians to their lands, and respect their right to self-determination.

Information blackouts and media suppression

The regime has systematically killed journalists, obstructed media coverage, tightened control over digital platforms, and pressured social-media companies to suppress Palestinian content. 

This constitutes an assault on “the right to truth” for people around the world.

Governments are also criticized for failing to intervene, with investigative reports highlighting their participation in the spread of false or misleading information that obscures the scale of the humanitarian crisis.

A global legal battle

The current situation underscores the urgency of a global legal campaign:

• Governments supporting the Palestinian cause should intensify international legal awareness efforts and expose the true face of the occupation.

• The right of resistance and Palestinian self-determination should be formally recognized under international law.

• The Israeli regime’s government, as an occupying power, cannot claim the right of “self-defense” against a population resisting occupation.

Renewed global pressure on international organizations must fulfill their responsibilities and break the political deadlock surrounding Gaza.