Recognition of Israel's War Crimes in the 2023 Israel-Hamas War under the Statute Framework of the International Criminal Court

On October 7, 2023, Palestinian militant groups led by Hamas launched a surprise attack named "Operation Al-Aqsa Storm" against Israel (El Deeb, 2023). This attack began with a barrage of rockets targeting southern Israel. According to Hamas' announcement, its purpose was to respond to the desecration of Al-Aqsa Mosque, the growth of Israeli settlements in the West Bank, settler violence in the area, and the siege of the Gaza Strip (Crescent International, 2023). In response, Israel declared a state of war and launched a counter-operation called "Operation Iron Swords" with the aim of destroying Hamas, freeing hostages, and controlling the Gaza Strip. After clearing Hamas militants from its territory, the Israeli army conducted extensive aerial bombardment of the Gaza Strip, followed by a large-scale ground attack. During this operation, Israel ordered the evacuation of the northern part of the Gaza Strip and launched nearly 29,000 bombs, rockets, and chemicals, causing damage and destruction to nearly 307,000 homes (Jared & Shah, 2024). Experts claim the scale and speed of destruction of protected objects, such as residential buildings in Gaza, is among the most severe in contemporary history (Evan, 2024). The violent confrontation resulted in the displacement of nearly the entire population of 2.3 million in Gaza. More than 24,000 Palestinians were killed, with over 10,000 children and 7,000 women among the casualties (Abou-Ghazala, 2023).This significant civilian death toll and destruction of buildings and urban infrastructure have led to numerous accusations of war crimes against Israel due to its actions against civilians during the conflict with Hamas. A "war crime" is a violation of the laws of war and can lead to individual criminal responsibility. Important conventions such as the Geneva Conventions and Additional Protocols, and the Rome Statute, define what acts are considered war crimes.The International Criminal Court (ICC) was established to deal with war crimes according to Article 1 of the Rome Statute.As a non-member observer state in the United Nations, Palestine ratified the Rome Statute on April 1, 2015 (Abedini, 2014: 333). Following this ratification, the Palestinian government came under the jurisdiction of the ICC. However, the Israeli government has not joined the Rome Statute and, due to its non-recognition of an independent State of Palestine in the international arena, has not accepted the court's jurisdiction over Palestine.Therefore, the initial question of this article is whether the ICC has jurisdiction over Israel's alleged war crimes. If the answer is yes, then based on what rules can the court condemn Israel's actions in the 2023 conflict as war crimes? This research explores these questions.The first part of this study addresses the issue of the court's jurisdiction in dealing with alleged Israeli war crimes, thereby considering the recognition of an independent State of Palestine. It then examines the existing regulations by analyzing current rules and the membership of both Israel and Palestine in the relevant conventions. Once the competence of these regulations is clarified, the second part presents examples of Israel's alleged war crimes in the 2023 conflict, categorized as crimes against persons and crimes against protected objects. The author attempts to reconcile the acts committed by Israel with the relevant regulations.This research aims to prove the jurisdiction of the ICC and identify the applicable regulations in potential proceedings. It will define crimes against protected persons and objects by applying the Rome Statute, Geneva Conventions and Additional Protocols clause by clause, ultimately arguing that Israel's actions in the 2023 conflict constitute war crimes.Words can be used to construct the cruelest weapons, yet they can also be the most effective deterrents. Ironically, Israel, a nation that has garnered significant international sympathy through its use of words in recent history, now stands accused of committing a brutal massacre in Gaza.This article sought to analyze the bare facts of the Israel-Gaza conflict through a legal lens and demonstrate how the Israeli army's actions might be considered war crimes under existing regulations.The research identified the ICC as the most competent authority in the international arena to pursue war crimes investigations. Therefore, the first step was to establish the court's jurisdiction in the 2023 Israel-Palestine conflict. In doing so, the article acknowledges an independent State of Palestine, positing that the Israel-Palestine conflict is an international one. Consequently, it concludes that the Court