Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Friday submitted to Congress a long-awaited report on Israeli military operations in Gaza that found the Israeli military violated international humanitarian law, according to key findings in the document. Although it was criticized as a possibility, it had not been officially recognized that the violation had already occurred.
The report states that although Israel is suspected of violating international humanitarian law from January 1, 2023, to late April of this year, the period covered by the report, the United States has “completely determined whether or not American-made weapons were used.” He said he did not know the information. in those actions. The book’s authors cite the difficulty of determining facts on the ground in areas of active fighting and Hamas’ military use of civilian infrastructure.
“Nevertheless, given Israel’s heavy dependence on US-made defense products, since October 7 it has It is reasonable to assess that the defense articles are used by Israeli security forces to “reduce civilian harm,” the report adds.
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The report says that Israel “did not fully cooperate” with the U.S. government to maximize the flow of humanitarian aid in the first months after October 7, but that efforts have ” The report states that there has been a significant increase in the number of
Additionally, while the overall level of aid reaching Palestinian civilians remains “inadequate,” the report found that within applicable U.S. law, “the Israeli government prohibits or restricts the transportation or provision of U.S. humanitarian aid.” “At this point, we are not evaluating whether it is possible.”
The report criticizes the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) for potentially failing to utilize well-known best practices to reduce civilian casualties.
“Israel has the knowledge, experience, and tools to implement best practices to reduce harm to civilians in military operations, but the results on the ground, including high levels of civilian casualties, are “All cases raise serious questions about whether the Defense Forces are effectively utilizing them in military operations.”
However, the report also reveals that Israel has “initiated a number of ongoing criminal investigations, including charges related to the death and treatment of detainees and suspected violations of international humanitarian law,” while It notes that there are no known criminal charges against him. It was completed.
The IDF’s fact-finding and evaluation mechanism also “continues to investigate hundreds of incidents to consider possible illegal acts in the context of ongoing military operations,” the report said.
The report also calls for “hundreds of tactical pauses” to inform civilians in Gaza, where to go to avoid harm (through leaflet distribution and text messages), and sophisticated tools to locate civilians. It also notes Israel’s extensive efforts to inform its systems, including: “The reported rate of civilian casualties in the conflict raises serious questions about the effectiveness of Israel’s precautionary measures.”
A senior State Department official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive assessment, said NSM-20 is a useful tool for getting the Israeli government to provide information on specific incidents and, in some cases, improving its methods. He said it turned out to be. It facilitated the delivery of humanitarian aid.
The 46-page declassified report summarizes the views of bureaus and foreign affairs officials across the State Department, and includes input from the Pentagon and the White House.
The memorandum, known as NSM-20, provides a written statement to the more than 100 countries currently receiving U.S. military assistance that the weapons are being used in accordance with U.S. and international humanitarian law and that each country will appropriately facilitate deliveries. It required a commitment within 180 days. About U.S. humanitarian aid. The deadline for countries in conflict, including Israel, Ukraine, Nigeria, Somalia, Iraq, Colombia and Kenya, to submit written commitments has been shortened to 45 days, March 24.
The State Department then set a May 8 voluntary deadline to submit a mandated review of those guarantees to Congress, but the report’s timing was temporarily pushed back as the agency finalized its conclusions.
“This is the first time the State Department has conducted an exercise like this, so we are working hard to ensure that everything is completely accurate,” State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said at a May 8 press conference. We are taking careful precautions,” he said.
The report says the guarantees provided by the seven countries in the ongoing conflict are “sufficient and reliable to continue providing defense provisions.”
Democratic Sen. Chris Van Hollen of Maryland, a leading supporter of NSM-20, expressed disappointment with the product submitted Friday.
“One of the important general findings of this report is that there is no reasonable person who believes that the Netanyahu government is violating international law in its actions in Gaza,” Van Hollen said in a conference call with reporters. The conclusion was that there was good evidence.” “But the administration dodged all difficult questions about making actual decisions,” he said.
Van Hollen said credible non-governmental organizations have already detailed a number of alleged violations of international humanitarian law. “But this report avoids any deep examination of the facts and law behind those incidents.”
“It’s hard to believe that the U.S. government has less information than organizations like Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and Oxfam,” he said.
Republican Sen. Jim Risch (Idaho), ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, also criticized the report’s findings, calling them “politically harmful” to Israel.
“The administration is seeking to appease far-left voters at the expense of close allies in the midst of a just war against Hamas terrorists,” Risch said in a statement.
The report was released at a critical time in Israel’s military operation in Gaza, which has now spanned seven months. In a notable policy shift, President Biden said in an interview with CNN on Wednesday that the United States has suspended shipments of 2,000-pound bombs to Israel to prevent them from being used in a large-scale operation in the southern Gaza city of Rafah. said. It is the first time that “civilians have been killed as a result of those bombs.”
A White House announcement released Tuesday night said a single shipment of 3,500 bombs, including 500-pound and 2,000-pound so-called dumb bombs, would be subject to “end use” and “their likely effects.” That’s the case in dense urban environments, which were specifically suspended last week due to concerns. ” The paper’s statement also specified that the State Department is considering other deliveries, including JDAM kits that would help transform dumb bombs into precision weapons. It is estimated that more than 1 million Palestinians have taken refuge in Rafah.
National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said Friday that the president was “fully briefed” on the memorandum.
The Israeli military has been carrying out airstrikes in Rafah for weeks, and earlier this week sent tanks and troops to take control of parts of the city, including Rafah’s border crossing with Egypt. Biden administration officials have described previous incursions as “limited,” but warned against broader operations that would put more civilian lives at risk.
In the CNN interview, Biden also indicated that he intends to ensure that Israel continues to receive defensive weapons such as the Iron Dome system, but if the IDF presses ahead with an attack, other He suggested that the United States may withhold offensive weapons and shells from the United States. What he called the “population center” of Rafah.
In response to Biden’s remarks, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement: “If Israel must be isolated, we will be isolated too.” According to Israeli media, Israel’s War Cabinet unanimously voted on Thursday night to expand operations in Rafah.
Biden said in February after pressure from Democratic lawmakers, including Rep. Van Hollen, who called for stricter enforcement mechanisms to ensure recipients of U.S. military aid comply with international law. issued NSM-20. This comes at the same time that President Biden asked Congress to approve additional emergency security funding for Israel, which was finally announced last month for $26 billion on top of the $3 billion in annual military aid that Israel receives. Funding approved.
Some 35,000 Palestinian civilians, mostly women and children, have been killed since the start of Israel’s military operation in Gaza, according to local health authorities. Israeli forces advanced after more than 1,000 Hamas militants stormed Israel’s southern border, killing more than 1,200 Israelis and taking more than 240 hostages.
Dozens of Democratic lawmakers have already accused Israel of violating U.S. law under the Foreign Assistance Act and called on the administration to impose penalties. Human rights groups and an independent task force also said Israel displayed a “clear pattern” of violations of international law and restrictions on humanitarian aid.
The State Department is actively investigating Israel’s actions under other internal accountability mechanisms, including the Civilian Injury Response Guidelines (CHIRG), which was established in August 2023. In February, Miller, the State Department spokesperson, confirmed incidents in Gaza that may have affected civilians. The damage caused by American weapons was under consideration.
Friday’s report stated that “85 cases of suspected harm to civilians related to Israeli military operations in Gaza were submitted to CHIRG for evaluation, and approximately 40 percent of those cases were resolved. “It has said.
The department has a separate process for determining whether atrocities, including genocide, have been committed in conflicts.
Blinken also discussed the potential suspension of military aid under a federal measure known as the Leahy Act to an Israeli Defense Force unit determined to have committed serious human rights violations in the West Bank before the Oct. 7 attacks. I’ve been considering it for several months. Officials said the ministry was reviewing “new information” about the force submitted by the Israeli government last month.
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