ZOUHOUR MECHERGUI

Tunisia- In an interview with NuJINHA, Salsabil Al-Qalibi, Professor of Constitutional Law in Tunisia, said that Israel’s attacks on Gaza are war crimes and that Israel should stand trial in the International Criminal Court.

‘People in Gaza are subjected to war crimes’

Salsabil Al-Qalibi indicated that women are most affected by the ongoing conflicts in Syria, Libya, Gaza, Afghanistan, Sudan and many other countries.

“Israel targets women and children in Gaza. People in Gaza are subjected to war crimes every day. In the Gaza Strip, civilians are deliberately targeted and killed. We know that targeting civilians is prohibited by the law of war; however, Israel ignores the international law and conventions. The International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) dealt with war crimes that took place during the conflicts in the Balkans in the 1990s. The court tried and imprisoned Slobodan Milošević, the former President of Yugoslavia. Today, the International Criminal Court is an independent judicial institution empowered to investigate and prosecute war crimes, crimes against humanity, genocide, and the crime of aggression.”

‘Israel does not fulfill its obligations’

The Geneva Conventions are the main pillars of protection for children during armed conflict. Israel ratified the Geneva Conventions on July 6, 1951. Speaking about the 4th Geneva Convention which concerns protected civilians in occupied territory, Salsabil Al-Qalibi said, “Israel does not fulfill its obligations by targeting civilians in Gaza.”

‘The rights of Palestinian women have been ignored for 70 years’

Emphasizing that women and children are targeted in Gaza, she said, “This is a war crime. Today, a brutal war is waged against Palestinians resisting for their freedom. Civilians in Gaza are subjected to all kinds of armed attacks. The rights of Palestinian women have been ignored for more than 70 years.”

Salsabil Al-Qalibi called on human rights organizations, NGOs, women’s organizations and politicians to pressure governments so that crimes committed against women in conflict zones can be investigated and the perpetrators of these crimes stand trial in the international criminal court. “For instance, ISIS abducted and tortured women in Syria. An international criminal tribunal must be established for the prosecution of ISIS members. The silence against the crimes committed against Syrian and Libyan women led to the massacres in Gaza. The international community must take an urgent action against the tragedies that affect and target women in Syria, Libya, Yemen, Afghanistan and Palestine. Women in conflict zones need feminist solidarity.”