Israelis must recognize the atrocities committed in their name

A French-Israeli lawyer last month submitted a report to the International Criminal Court accusing Benjamin Netanyahu and seven other Israeli political and military figures of incitement to genocide. Omer Shatz, who is a professor at Sciences Po, filed the case on behalf of an unnamed French-Palestinian victim of the Gaza genocide.

The lawyer had previously raised a lawsuit with Israel’s Supreme Court in 2014 after the “Operation Protective Edge” massacre. When he lost that case, he left Israel with the warning, “You will see, in 10 years, there will be a genocide.” His prophecy has now been fulfilled.

As predicted, the genocide has been possible because of the constant dehumanization of Palestinians. In last month’s 170-page filing, Shatz mentioned the genocidal statements made by Israeli officials. In January last year, the International Court of Justice found there was a “plausible” risk of genocide and ordered Israel to punish those who made declarations inciting genocide. However, the government of Israel did not conduct any investigation in this respect, totally ignoring the orders of the court.

According to Ilan Pappe, the Israeli historian, the average Israeli citizen is subject to propaganda from the cradle to the grave. Hence, giving Israelis more information will not change their mind; they need a reset. They need a big shock to realize what their government and military has done.

Israelis need a reset. They need a big shock to realize what their government and military has done

Dr. Dania Koleilat Khatib

Pape explained the behavior of Israel by referring to previous colonial powers and empires. He said they ultimately become too brutal and reach a point where it is “too much.” Have the Israelis yet reached the point where they and the international community realize it is too much? Shatz said that he is “obligated, as a Jew, to do this” and is “consumed, as an Israeli,” by Israel’s crimes and impunity. Has Israeli society reached the stage of recognition?

South Africa raised the lawsuit against Israel in the International Court of Justice, while the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants against Netanyahu and his former defense minister. However, for an Israeli citizen to file a case against its own government is a signal. It is a signal that the Israelis are starting to realize that their country’s brutality and injustice is too much.

With a ceasefire now in effect, the atrocities are being uncovered. Palestinians are going back to their homes to find the bodies of their loved ones after they were shot in the head. Prisoners are coming back in terrible condition after being subject to torture and sexual abuse. Even after all this cruelty, Israel has still not been able to realize its declared objective: eradicating Hamas. In fact, once the ceasefire was declared, Hamas members roamed the streets of Gaza, showing Israel that they are alive and kicking. This extreme brutality has not brought any security to Israel. It has only shown the world how ugly it is. Are Israelis starting to see the ugliness of the state that operates in their name?

Now, Israel is left to grapple with the aftermath of the Gaza war. It destroyed the homes of the Gazans, the schools, the hospitals and every other facility that made the Strip livable. While Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir and their ilk rejoice that Gaza is uninhabitable, Israel now has to handle 2 million Gazans. Will that drive the Israelis to ask “what have we done?” Will it prompt them to look in the mirror and ask themselves “who are we?” “How human are we when we deprive 2 million human beings of the basic necessities of life, when we deprive them of their dignity, when we kill one in every 50 Gazans (though experts estimate the actual number is much higher)?” “Where are we heading as a country?”

This extreme brutality has not brought any security to Israel. It has only shown the world how ugly it is

Dr. Dania Koleilat Khatib

Also, now that the war has ended, at least temporarily, there will have to be accountability and a serious investigation into the negligence of the Netanyahu administration, which allowed Oct. 7 to happen. Will that push them to dig beyond Oct. 7, go back in time and examine why these attacks took place. Will it push them to realize that putting 2 million people under siege for 17 years in an open-air prison will lead to a reaction, and a violent one.

The ceasefire has already caused divisions. The right wing in Israel does not want to stop the war, it wants to continue until Hamas is eradicated. However, the past 15 months have shown that even flattening Gaza will not eliminate Hamas. Those who are more mainstream want to end the war. Both groups have protested. The divisions that existed before the war are likely to be aggravated after it.

This is not a division over a marginal bill or a budget allocation, it is over the character of the state. What is the main basis of Israel: Jewishness or democracy and human rights? These are existential questions the average Israeli must face. Hence, the recognition of what has been done in Gaza is not only about Gaza, but also about who Israelis are as people. This is why Shatz’s filing is so important. He saw 10 years ago that his country was on a dangerous path. He had no choice but to raise a lawsuit against Israel at the International Criminal Court. Could this action by a French-Israeli lawyer save Israel from itself?

It is important to see the dynamics inside Israeli society once the ceasefire is fully established. Beyond the divisions that will arise, it is important to see if Shatz’s lawsuit is merely an individual initiative or if it reflects a new consciousness among Israeli society. Unless Israeli society recognizes that what the country has done is inhumane and unacceptable, there will be no reconciliation with the Palestinians. If there is no reconciliation, Israelis will have no peace, neither with the Palestinians nor with themselves.

• Dr. Dania Koleilat Khatib is a specialist in US-Arab relations with a focus on lobbying. She is co-founder of the Research Center for Cooperation and Peace Building, a Lebanese nongovernmental organization focused on Track II.