Social media pushing movement to prosecute IOF for war crimes
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Roughly 35,000 members of the Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) and Mossad have had their details released on social media in an attempt to bring them to justice.
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A screenshot from Telegram group “Israel Genocide Tracker” shows two members of the IOF posing before a blindfolded Palestinian. (Telegram)
As the recent Israeli occupation Prime Minister and Security minister are charged with war crimes by the International Criminal Court, the world of social media is attempting to prosecute individual Israelis for war crimes.
On Sunday, the Middle East Spectator Telegram group shared a dossier including the names and contact information of 35,000 Israeli troops and Mossad agents. The channel plans to assist in bringing the troops and operatives to justice outside of "Israel" after determining their whereabouts using publicly available information.
The IOF has not hesitated to broadcast itself on social media cheerfully committing various war crimes.
"This phenomenon is not new," Hilly Moodrick-Even Khen, an international law expert and chair of the Ariel University Center for Genocide Research and Study, told The Media Line. "It began about 20 years ago with the proliferation of universal jurisdiction."
Universal jurisdiction allows a state to prosecute individuals for certain crimes, even if committed outside its borders or involving non-citizens. It is based on the idea that some war crimes and crimes against humanity are so severe that they concern the entire international community, enabling any country with relevant laws to pursue justice.
"More and more states have subscribed to the idea that they could invoke universal jurisdiction," Moodrick-Even Khen explained.
'Our officers were taking photos along with us'
A member of the IOF informed The Media Line that photographs he posted online were shared on the Israel Genocide Tracker Telegram group, citing how he was trying to be extra cautious and change his privacy settings to avoid access to his posts,
After supporters of Palestine and Israeli supporters of an Israeli football club erupted in clashes in Amsterdam following Israeli provocations, many had their passports taken to cross-check if they served in the IOF.
This, along with the death of an Israeli emissary in the United Arab Emirates, had Israeli authorities advising Israelis to avoid posting details of travels and "avoid talking about their military service … or posting content relating to it on social media.”
One member of the IOF admitted that although his images were featured on the "Israel Genocide Tracker," the Israeli occupation authorities did not penalize him for them since the "commanding officers themselves were taking pictures right along with us," despite being told not to take photos.
"Israel's" +972 Magazine and Local Call reported in February that Israeli commanders are allowing the behavior, with one member admitting he took a "souvenir" from a medical center the IOF raided, detailing that “People took things — mugs, books, each one the souvenir that does it for him.”
Israeli soldiers looting Palestinian belongings during ‘military operations’ in Gaza incl gold, antiques, money, mobile phones, & laptops worth tens of millions of dollars, then publishing the crimes on social media
— ♡ ✦ Ᾰnnie ✦ ♡ (@Betelgeuse100) December 29, 2023
Via @EuroMedHRAr https://t.co/EBRo9duKOLpic.twitter.com/Iguv0iCiNJ
According to Moodrick-Even Khen, low- and mid-level members of ISIS have been prosecuted in Germany and France under universal jurisdiction. However, the specifics of prosecuting such a case against an Israeli would be complex since a suspect "cannot be tried in absentia" and "Israel" refuses to cooperate with collecting evidence.
IOF admit soldiers threw Palestinians off roof, say 'no moral defect'
The Israeli occupation military has acknowledged that its soldiers threw the bodies of Palestinian Resistance fighters from the roof of a building in the city of Qabatiya in Jenin Governorate, in the occupied West Bank.
An internal investigation by the occupation military concluded that there was "no moral defect" in the soldiers' actions. However, it also described the incident of throwing the bodies from the roof as a "bad incident" and conceded that a different solution should have been considered.
A spokesperson for the Israeli military stated that this was a "serious incident" and claimed that it would be thoroughly investigated.
The Israeli website i24news reported that the military received orders from Shin Bet to take the bodies of the Palestinians with them.
The investigation claimed that there was no access road for a crane to transfer the bodies from the roof, adding that the company commander informed the unit commander that retrieving the bodies was impossible due to the terrain, the inability to use stretchers, and the ongoing combat in the area.
It is noteworthy that all investigations conducted by the Israeli occupation military into violations committed by its soldiers against Resistance fighters and Palestinians have consistently failed to result in the conviction or punishment of the soldiers involved.
