IDF: Soldiers should refuse orders which may be war crimes, Israeli ex-security adviser tells BBC

I ask if the crisis in Gaza makes him worry about the survival of international law.

He points to the fact that the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) is seeking arrest warrants for Israel’s prime minister, defence minister and the IDF chief of staff.

The prosecutor also sought warrants for three Hamas leaders. All three, including Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, are now dead.

“It [international law] is not working on the ground in relation to Russia and Ukraine. It’s not working on the ground in relation to Sudan. It’s not working on the ground in relation to Palestine and Israel.

“There’s just no ifs and buts. We just have to, we have to recognize that. But that is not a reason to tear up the entire system.

“If you ask yourself what the alternative is, which is basically no pieces of paper with the words Treaties written on it, you’re back to the 1930s, and at least what we have now is a system of rules which allows people to stand up and say: ‘This is a violation of a treaty’.”

We asked the IDF for an interview but they said no spokesperson was available today, and referred us to an earlier statement which says: “The IDF will continue to act, as it always has done, according to international law.”

And today the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT), the army’s humanitarian relief wing, said it was their policy to facilitate the entrance of aid into Gaza “without limits”.

This is Israel’s narrative. But as scenes of civilian suffering continue to emerge from Jabalia it is being widely challenged.

With additional reporting by Rudabah Abbass, Haneen Abdeen and Alice Doyard