(Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs) Amb. Alan Baker - In response to Israel's military action against the Palestinian terror infrastructure in Jenin in July 2023, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs Josip Borrel, and the International Red Cross called upon Israel to respect "obligations under international law, including the duty to exercise restraint and use only proportional force." Such accusations display either utter ignorance or deliberate disregard of international law and practice, which expressly prohibits the use of civilian areas, especially refugee camps, as centers of terror and violence. International law provides that such civilian areas may lose their privileged protection if they are used for offensive military purposes and, as such, become legitimate military objectives. International law and practice outlaw the use of terror for any reason or justification. The calls upon Israel to exert "restraint and proportional force" are curious. How does Israel exert "proportionate force" to deal with explosive devices planted beneath roads or weapons and bombs produced in laboratories and stored under mosques? How do principles of "restraint and proportionality" deal with responding to the dispatching of hundreds of terrorists to kill Israelis? Israel needs to defend itself against those intent on killing its citizens. Such double standards by international bodies achieve nothing except to encourage the Palestinian terror apparatus, supported by Iran, to continue to harm Israel. The writer, who directs the international law program at the Jerusalem Center, served as the legal adviser to Israel's Foreign Ministry and as Israel's ambassador to Canada.
2023-07-20 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive