Israel’s rightwing government is recklessly steering the nation toward rogue-state status, with deeply troubling, escalating attacks on the United Nations that fuel a dangerous drift from international accountability. From its prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, down, it exhibits a brazen contempt for the global norms that govern human rights, conflict and diplomacy.
Hamas’s murderous attack last year in Israel, which left 1,200 people dead, ignited the current crisis. However, Israel’s response has been wildly disproportionate. Schools, hospitals and shelters have been struck, resulting in thousands of civilian deaths. In the year since the Gaza war began, the evidence supporting genocide claims against Israel has grown, with the UN human rights chief, Volker Türk, last week condemning Israel’s military for “effectively subjecting an entire population [in north Gaza] to bombing, siege and risk of starvation”. Israel has killed UN staff in Gaza and attacked UN bases in Lebanon. Israeli officials too often accuse the UN of antisemitism. The UN secretary general was barred from Israel for failing to “fully condemn” a missile strike by Iran on Israel this month.
By voting to cripple the operations of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (Unrwa), Israel’s parliament has undermined essential services provided to Palestinian refugees, with no replacement. Israel alleges Unrwa allowed Hamas militants to infiltrate its staff, a charge that the UN denies. The move exposes Israel’s irresponsible international behaviour. Undermining the UN and its humanitarian agencies – which protect civilians and alleviate emergency conditions – is indefensible. These organisations are pillars of the international legal and governance system. Though imperfect, this system remains essential in preserving a semblance of order, if not justice, within global relations.
The US and its allies have shielded Israel from the consequences of its actions. Washington could end the war tomorrow by stopping its arms flows and forcing a ceasefire deal on both sides that would see Israeli hostages go home. It should do so forthwith. But American politics has been paralysed by the need to win an election in which criticism of Israeli actions is deemed beyond the pale.
The UN asserts, correctly, that the US’s double standards undermine international law enforcement. This hypocrisy creates competing justice standards, weighing crimes against humanity against a state’s strategic value. That variance can be seen in the recent Brics summit communique, which acknowledged the international court of justice’s provisional measures against Israel, aimed at preventing genocide and Geneva convention violations. The US and allies like Britain cannot ignore Israel’s breaches of international law; complicity in war crimes would reflect a disregard for civilian lives. Yet Israeli soldiers rarely face accountability.
Last month’s UN general assembly resolution reflects a global consensus that peace depends on dismantling illegal settlements and Israeli military withdrawal. Brokering peace between Israel and the Palestinians through international mediation hinges on the UN’s ability to enforce its resolutions.
The UN security council’s dysfunction, with major powers using the Middle East for political gain, indicates that without a new approach, meaningful progress on peace in the region is unlikely. The US must restrain Israel to initiate a viable international peace process; without this, any foundation for peace crumbles.
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