Maq Masi Blog

Meta Description: A legal and moral analysis of the Israel-Hamas conflict, exploring the ICC, ICJ, US vetoes, Arab inaction, and the humanitarian crisis in Gaza — with a call for global accountability and a two-state solution.

Excerpt: As Gaza endures a devastating humanitarian crisis, this article examines the legal reckoning, political complicity, and urgent need for accountability in the Israel-Hamas war — a call for moral clarity and justice for all.

Gaza: The War That Demands a Moral Reckoning

Estimates of the death toll in Gaza, from sources including the Gaza Health Ministry and UN agencies, range from over 40,000 to beyond 65,000. Thousands of children remain trapped beneath rubble. Hospitals are non-functional. Water is scarce, and access to food has been severely restricted. Entire communities have been reduced to ruins.

What began as a single act of terror has spiralled into one of the most severe humanitarian catastrophes of our time — unfolding on screens, in silence, and without resolution.

A War with a Clear Beginning

On 7 October 2023, Hamas-led fighters launched a brutal attack in southern Israel, killing approximately 1,195 people and abducting around 250 others. The attack, which included deliberate targeting of civilians, was condemned globally as an act of terror and a grave violation of international law.

Israel responded with a large-scale military operation in Gaza, aiming to dismantle Hamas and secure the release of hostages. Yet the campaign’s scale, duration, and intensity have raised profound legal and moral questions.

The majority of those killed in Gaza are civilians. Healthcare infrastructure has collapsed. Famine-like conditions persist. The laws of armed conflict are under strain — and, in the eyes of many, violated — in full view of the global community.

A Legal Reckoning Underway

Two international courts have intervened, marking the most significant legal scrutiny of wartime conduct since the Yugoslavia and Rwanda tribunals.

The International Criminal Court (ICC) has sought arrest warrants against leaders from both Hamas and the Israeli government. The charges are grave:

• For Hamas leaders: extermination, murder, and hostage-taking.

• For Israeli leaders, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Yoav Gallant: starvation of civilians as a method of warfare, wilful killing, persecution, and crimes against humanity.

These are not symbolic gestures. The ICC prosecutes individuals — including sitting heads of state — and does not recognise political immunity.

Simultaneously, the International Court of Justice (ICJ), in a case brought by South Africa, issued legally binding provisional measures against Israel. The court deemed the charge of genocide plausible enough that it issued measures requiring Israel to prevent such acts, ensure humanitarian aid access, and preserve evidence.

This is not a final ruling, but a legally binding warning grounded in international law, not politics.

If genocide is proven under the Genocide Convention, the consequences could include lifelong imprisonment for perpetrators, international sanctions, and reparations for victims. Such crimes, as affirmed by recent UN resolutions, are jus cogens — violations so severe that no state may lawfully ignore or support them.

A World Divided — and Complicit

Despite these legal efforts, political paralysis persists.

The United States has repeatedly vetoed UN Security Council resolutions calling for a ceasefire, citing concerns that the resolutions failed to adequately address Israel’s security needs or condemn Hamas. These vetoes have prolonged the conflict, shielded violations from accountability, and deepened civilian suffering.

While American weapons, intelligence, and funding flow to Israel, silence prevails in parts of the Arab world. Many wealthy Arab states, despite their rhetorical support for Palestinians, have offered limited action. Their response, constrained by geopolitical alliances—particularly with the US—has been largely confined to statements and minimal aid, despite controlling trillions of dollars in sovereign wealth. This inaction, whether strategic or pragmatic, weighs heavily on Gaza’s besieged population.

Complicity can be active or passive, loud or silent.

A Future Beyond Force

A lasting solution cannot rest on military dominance. Gaza cannot remain in ruins or under militia control. Likewise, Israel’s policies of siege, settlement expansion, and disproportionate retaliation must face accountability.

A credible post-war framework for Gaza is essential, potentially under neutral international oversight — such as a United Nations or Arab League mandate — to rebuild infrastructure, restore civilian governance, and ensure public safety. This must guarantee security for both Israelis and Palestinians, without allowing either side to impose dehumanising conditions.

The United Kingdom and European Union have shown principled leadership, advocating for international humanitarian law, unhindered aid access, and a two-state solution that respects Israeli sovereignty and Palestinian self-determination. Their diplomacy, though imperfect, offers a path grounded in rights and reconciliation.

The Moral Core of International Law

International Humanitarian Law is not a Western construct. It embodies universal principles: protect civilians, distinguish between combatants and non-combatants, and ensure humanitarian access. These are not optional — they are binding on all parties.

No ideology, grievance, or history justifies targeting civilians or denying access to food, water, or medical care. The moral test is not about choosing sides, but whether you believe law should restrain power.

This is a moment of reckoning — not only for Israel and Hamas, or the courts in The Hague, but for the global community.

Will we allow war crimes to go unpunished? Will human rights become empty rhetoric? Or will we uphold the principle that no child’s life is worth less because of their ethnicity, passport, or place of birth?

Let this not be remembered as the war where law was ignored. Let it be the moment when justice prevailed.