MIDDLE EAST - The Never-Ending War, Violation of International Law

My answer, YES, BOTH DID!

"Are Israel and Hamas violating international laws of war?" PBS NewsHour 7/31/2014

Excerpt

JUDY WOODRUFF (Newshour):  With the late-breaking news of a humanitarian cease-fire due to take effect within hours, we return now to the ongoing battle between Hamas and Israel and questions being raised about whether either side is violating the laws of war.

Joining us are retired Lieutenant Colonel Gary Solis.  He had a 26-year career in the Marine Corps, served two tours in Vietnam and became a military lawyer and judge.  He’s now on the faculty at both George Washington and Georgetown University law schools.  And retired Lieutenant Colonel Geoffrey Corn, he had a 22-year career in the Army, where he served as a lawyer.  He’s now a professor at South Texas College of Law in Houston.

And we welcome you both to the NewsHour.

To you first, Colonel Corn. We want to talk about both sides in this conflict.  Let’s start with Hamas.  What is it that you believe Hamas is doing that violates international law?

LT. COL. GEOFFREY CORN (RET.), South Texas College of Law:  Well, I think the two most obvious examples are the deliberate attack on civilian population centers, with apparently no effort to target specific military targets in Israel.

Just firing missiles in the direction of Israeli population centers is a clear violation of the law.  And the other is locating their vital military assets within the midst of the civilian population in an apparent attempt to make it more difficult for the Israeli Defense Forces to target those assets, which is also a clear violation of the law.

JUDY WOODRUFF:  And what international law are you referring to?

LT. COL. GEOFFREY CORN:  Well, the international law that I’m referring to — and I’m sure my friend Gary will refer to — we call the law of war, or it’s often called international humanitarian law.

And it’s one of the oldest bodies of international law.  Many of these rules are codified in treaties that are binding on nations throughout the world, including the Israelis.  And even the rules that are not applicable as a matter of treaty law, apply to all parties to a conflict as a matter of what we call customary international law.