US claims that by using US weaponry in Gaza, Israel may have violated international law

US claims that by using US weaponry in Gaza, Israel may have violated international law

According to the US administration, Israel may have used US weaponry in Gaza in violation of humanitarian law.

The State Department claims it is "reasonable to assess" that Israel has utilized armaments provided by the US in ways that are "inconsistent" with its responsibilities in a report that was delayed.

However, it claims that Israel's battle with Hamas in Gaza has been a "extraordinary military challenge".

The White House requested the study, which was sent to Congress on Friday.

Although the report expressed strong criticism of some Israeli activities in Gaza, it did not state categorically that the campaign carried out by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) had violated international law.

Furthermore, it said that arms shipments could proceed since Israel had given it "credible and reliable" guarantees about sticking to the lawful use of US weaponry.

In addition, the document stated that it is frequently "difficult to determine facts on the ground in an active war zone" regarding what are legitimate targets because Hamas "uses civilian infrastructure during military purposes and civilians as human shields" and the US government doesn't have "complete information" in its assessment.

However, it said that these weapons had most likely been deployed "in instances inconsistent with its IHL [international humanitarian law] obligations or experiencing established best practices for mitigating civilian harm" because of Israel's heavy dependence on US-made weaponry.

It stated that "Israel has the knowledge, experience, and tools to implement best practices to stay mitigating civilian harm in its military operations" , yet "results on the ground, including high levels of civilian casualties, raise important issues as to whether the IDF is using them effectively in all cases" .

According to the study, Israeli attempts to prevent injury to civilians have been deemed "inconsistent, ineffective, and inadequate" by the UN and humanitarian organizations.

According to the State Department, throughout the early months of the war, Israel did not fully cooperate with US attempts to "maximise" humanitarian supplies into Gaza. But it also said that things had changed.

"We do not currently assess that the Israeli government has forbidden or otherwise restricting the moving or delivery of US humanitarian assistance," concluded the report.

Former US ambassador to Turkey David Satterfield, who contributed to the research, told the BBC that it was the first of its type and that the US will be monitoring Israeli activities "under review."

"This is a conflict quite unlike any that the world has seen," he said. "We tried to take account of any of these variables in coming up with a very frank, but also credible judgement."

After openly threatening to withhold specific bombs and artillery rounds from Israel if it proceeded with an attack on Rafah, the last bastion of Hamas in Gaza, home to more than a million Palestinians, the report was ultimately made public a few days later.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu brushed off President Biden's concerns that the operation in Rafah would cross a "red line" and pledged that Israel would "stand alone" if needed, just before the report was released.

According to the UN, more than 80,000 Palestinians have left Rafah since Monday. Israeli tanks are allegedly stationed near populated areas and are under regular fire.

At the beginning of their operation, Israeli forces grabbed control of the Rafah border with Egypt and closed it. Meanwhile, the UN declared that it was too risky for its personnel and trucks to go to the newly reopened Kerem Shalom crossing with Israel.

In reaction to Hamas' onslaught on southern Israel on October 7, which resulted in around 1,200 deaths and 252 hostages, Israel began a military operation in Gaza to eradicate the organization. Since then, the health ministry in Gaza, which is governed by Hamas, has reported over 34,900 deaths in the region.