On 7th October 2023, an armed conflict broke out between Hamas and Israel after unprecedented attacks on Israel by the Palestinian militant group Hamas. It has been the worst slaughter of Jews since the Holocaust. More than 40,000 Palestinians in Gaza died in the ensuing conflict. Nearly 2 million Palestinians have been displaced. More than 100 hostages are still held by Hamas.
The Hamas-Israel War has raised many political, economic, moral and legal questions. Hundreds of thousands of people protested against the war in Gaza. The conflict has split intellectuals and governments around the world. What could be the path to peace? Would the creation of a Palestinian state next to Israel be the solution? Should the UN Security Council establish an UN administration like in case of Kosovo and East Timor? What is the regional impact of the Gaza conflict on neighboring states. What is the position of Arab states? What does the Gaza War mean for states like Jordan?
As pointed out by two German scholars: “Can the solution to the conflict be found in the rules, institutions, and courts of international law, or should this ultimately be left to politicians and diplomats?”1 Has Hamas violated international law in its attack of 7th October 2023 on Israel? Are the current or possible future countermeasures undertaken by Israel in response justifiable under international law? Can Israel rely on Art. 51 of the UN Charter? Is Israel acting within the relevant law of war? Are all actions necessary, including the blockade of water, food, and fuel/electricity to the inhabitants of Gaza? Has Israel committed the crime of genocide? Did Germany violate the Genocide Convention by providing military help to Israel? Has the “rules-based international order” collapsed?
As of November 2024, international institutions have failed to end the violence in Gaza and to provide a peaceful solution to the Israel-Palestine conflict. Some critics view the Gaza crisis as the end of the rules-based order.2
The current section of our journal focuses on the Gaza conflict from the perspective of international law and the United Nations. Our experts discuss, among others, the jus ad bellum, the role of the UN Security Council, and South Africa’s case against Israel at the International Court of Justice.
Warmest wishes,
Boris Kondoch
International Law Experts Christian Marxsen and Florian Kriener Answer Your Questions on the Gaza–Israel Conflict, available at https://law.mpg.de/news/international-law-experts-christian-marxsen-and-florian-kriener-answer-your-questions-on-the-gaza-israel-conflict/.
For further discussion, see Agnès Callarmard, ‘Gaza and the End of the Rules-Based Order’, Foreign Affairs, 15 February 2024, https://www.foreignaffairs.com/israel/gaza-and-end-rules-based-order.
