Legal Explainer: What Is The Hague Group, and Why the Hind Rajab Foundation's Participation Matters17/7/2025
 Emergency Conference of States: July 2025 - Bogotá, Colombia
On July 16, 2025, 30 countries convened in Bogotá, Colombia, under the banner of The Hague Group to activate a coordinated legal response to the decades of Israel's impunity from prosecution under international law, which has culminated in the genocide in Gaza. The two-day conference and its Joint Statement on the Conclusion of the Emergency Conference on Palestine marked a defining moment in international legal history—the first time since the establishment of Israel that a multi-state alliance, including Belize, Bolivia, Colombia, Cuba, Honduras, Malaysia, Namibia, Senegal, and South Africa, committed to enforcing international law without political bias or delay. Unsurprisingly, no leading Western state endorsed the statement. However, Bogotá will be remembered as a turning point and historic moment as other states take the lead in restoring dignity of life to the world order and enforcing the inalienable tenets of international humanitarian law.  The Nakba (Catastrophe) of 1948 was the first major systemic campaign of violence carried out by the Zionist movement to dispossess and forcibly displace Palestinians from Historic Palestine. With the support and complicity of the Global North, this ethnic cleansing and mass expulsion campaign is now 77 years strong.
Whether you see the Nakba from the perspective of the "never-ending Nakba" or from "multiple Nakbas inflicted on the Palestinian people", one fact remains: If we were to measure the ideology of Zionism by its material manifestation in the past, it would be one of systemic and violent ethnic cleansing through mass dispossession, displacement, detention, state-sponsored terror campaigns, assassinations, and uniform killing. In its present, as Zionism has cemented its grip on violating international humanitarian law and the rights of the Palestinian people with utter impunity, this material manifestation has culminated into an ongoing genocide in Gaza, apartheid in the West Bank, and life as second-class citizens for Palestinians inside the territories occupied by Israel in 1948.  Since October 2023, Israel has been relentlessly attacking the Gaza Strip, causing over 50,000 deaths (though this is almost certainly an undercount) and the complete or partial destruction of over 80% of civilian infrastructure in Gaza. As part of this onslaught, Israel's armed forces have repeatedly attacked Palestinian healthcare workers, facilities and infrastructure, severely hampering the ability to treat the sick and wounded and leading to further suffering and thousands of preventable deaths.
Healthcare workers and facilities are protected under International Humanitarian Law—they are afforded, per the principle of medical neutrality, a baseline protection from attacks. The direct targeting of hospitals, doctors, nurses, paramedics and ambulances is a war crime—a war crime particularly calculated by Israel to accelerate the genocide and the extermination of all life in Gaza.  The Hind Rajab Foundation (HRF) will launch a coordinated legal and political campaign tomorrow to counter the visit of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu—currently wanted by the International Criminal Court (ICC)—to Hungary or anywhere in Europe.
Netanyahu is subject to an ICC arrest warrant for war crimes and crimes against humanity. Under his command, the Israeli military has overseen the killing of more than 61,000 Palestinians in Gaza, including over 17,000 children, alongside the widespread destruction of civilian infrastructure and the use of starvation as a weapon of war. These actions are not only morally indefensible—they are legally prosecutable under international law. Welcoming Netanyahu to Hungary—or facilitating his travel through European airspace—constitutes a direct violation of the legal obligations of ICC State Parties.  In another act of collective punishment upon the people of Gaza, the Israeli government announced on March 2nd, 2025 that it will resume the blockage of all aid into the Gaza Strip. The decision came as the first phase of the ceasefire expired—Israel refused to proceed with the second phase of the ceasefire, which called for full Israeli withdrawal from the Gaza Strip. Instead, Israel suggested a US-drafted plan to extend the first phase of the ceasefire, a delay tactic which was not outlined in the original ceasefire agreement and indeed, ran contra to the agreement. The already fragile and continuously breached ceasefire agreement was once again violated by Israel. Israel's refusal to begin negotiations on the second phase was largely tied to its refusal allow mobile homes into Gaza despite the responsibility to do so under the agreement. This denial has left infants exposed to harsh winter conditions without shelter, ultimately resulting in the deaths of seven Gazan infants so far.
After 15 months of relentless and indiscriminate attacks by Israel, the destruction in the Gaza Strip is immense. Initial estimates suggest that up to 80% of civilian infrastructure in Gaza has been destroyed or damaged. Horrific images emerging from Gaza show entire neighborhoods reduced to rubble. It is vital to emphasize that the destruction and targeting of civilian infrastructure constitute both a grave war crime and a crime against humanity—highlighted in recent cases brought to courts by the Hind Rajab Foundation.
Israel's Impunity, a Prolongation of Genocide: Gaza Ceasefire Violated Time and Time Again21/2/2025
 On February 11th, 2025, amidst an already fragile ceasefire in Gaza, Hamas released a statement declaring that the hostage exchange will be postponed, citing numerous Israeli violations of the ceasefire agreement. Legacy media, such as the New York Times, quickly jumped to report on Hamas' decision, but intentionally left the cause of the postponement vague, and even went as far as to bury the lead. In their reporting, it took the New York Times nine paragraphs until they mentioned the fact that "three Israeli officials and two mediators, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss a sensitive matter, said that Hamas' claims were accurate."
 As the fragile ceasefire in Gaza holds, despite Israel continuously violating it, the Israeli Defense Forces have ramped up their operations in the West Bank. Another child tragically made headlines 11 days ago, on January 28th, when he was shot by an Israeli sniper during a raid on Tulkarm. The last name in the headlines was a familiar one, Rajab. Rajab is a common family name across the Arab world; hence, Hind and Saddam are not directly related; in a harrowing display of impunity, the two children shared the experience of being targeted by the IDF simply because they are both Palestinians. Hind and Saddam are not connected by familial ties, but by the systematic violence that the IDF inflicts on the Palestinian population as a whole.
On Monday, January 27th, the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) launched a new raid into Tulkarm in the northern occupied West Bank. The Palestinian News and Information Agency, WAFA, reported that Israeli soldiers were stationed in front of the Martyr Dr. Thabet Thabet Hospital, obstructing the work of ambulances while interrogating their medical crews. WAFA also reported that IDF snipers were not only deployed on the roofs of several buildings and homes, but had also seized dozens of civilian homes, both inside and outside of Tulkarm camp, turning them into military outposts. Meanwhile, other soldiers blew up several shops, houses, and local properties.  Dyab Abou Jahjah, president of the Hind Rajab Foundation, has filed a criminal complaint in Belgium against Israeli Minister Amichai Chikli for making terrorist threats against him. Chikli’s January 6, 2025, social media post referenced a deadly incident and threatened Mr. Abou Jahjah to intimidate him into halting his advocacy for justice in Gaza. The complaint argues that the threats constitute terrorism under Belgian law. It also asserts that Chikli is not immune from prosecution. Following this, Chikli canceled his visit to Brussels, fearing arrest after Belgian authorities confirmed he has no diplomatic immunity.
Read the full statement here.  There is now confirmation that Israeli minister Amichai Chikli canceled his planned visit to Belgium because of the risk of arrest linked to our legal action. Israeli Kan News reported that Israel asked Belgium whether Chikli would have immunity, and Belgium responded that he would not.
By refusing to grant immunity, Belgium has upheld international law, making it clear that arrest remains a possibility. This development is a victory for accountability and a warning to those who believe they can act with impunity. More details on our legal action against Chikli tomorrow. |
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