The kidnapping of three Jews--and war crimes

Last updated: June 30, 2014

If you have been following recent news reports about the kidnapping of three Jewish boys from Israel, you will know that the European Union (EU) and the United Nations (UN) have both condemned the kidnapping. You might also know that the EU and the UN have warned Israel that its behaviour in its search for the boys might subject it to accusations of war crimes.

But what the EU and the UN have not told you is that actual war crimes have already been committed in this incident. They remain silent about some very real war crimes, crimes against humanity and the possibility of a genocide crime. They focus only on Israel’s possible war crimes. Why?

The war crimes were committed by Arabs.

The EU and the UN refuse to label Arab actions as prosecutable war crimes and crimes against humanity—as defined in The Rome Statutes (see below). This refusal to ‘call out’ Arab war crimes marks the EU and UN as dishonest brokers in the Arab-Israel war. Their silence demonstrates that they have no interest in morality. That is to say, their silence proves they are neither fair, balanced nor truthful. Their silence does not support their advertised concern for peace. Rather, it supports the Arab against Israel--because that silence helps to validate the lie that Israel is a criminal nation—or a nation bordering on criminality.

In fact, it the Arab who should get this label, not Israel. The Arab, not Israel, commits these crimes. If the EU and the UN were truly honest brokers, they would call a spade a spade—and denounce the war crimes committed by the Arab.

To understand the war crimes committed in this kidnapping, here is a brief review of ‘War Crimes’, ‘Crimes against Humanity’ and ‘Genocide’. The definitions come directly from The Rome Statutes of the International Criminal Court.

The Rome Statutes of the International Criminal Court were established in order to strengthen and to reaffirm the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations (The Rome Statutes, July 2002, Preamble). Most specifically, the Statutes aim to make certain that no state will use force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any other state (ibid)—and be able to get away with it.

 The Statutes’ purpose is to create an effective means to prosecute both crimes and atrocities that threaten world peace and security (ibid). The Statutes begin by defining ‘Genocide’. Article 6 of the Statutes defines ‘Genocide’ as including (among other things), causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of a group; and forcibly transferring children of one group to another group.

Article 7 defines ‘Crimes against Humanity’ as “acts committed as part of a widespread or systematic attack directed against any civilian population. Examples of such acts include:

- Imprisonment or other severe deprivation of physical liberty; and, the “Enforced disappearance of persons [i.e., kidnapping]”.

Article 8 defines ‘War crimes‘ to include attacks directed against any civilian population, including a course of conduct involving ‘the multiple commission of acts’ against a civilian population; taking hostages; and intentionally directing attacks against  individual civilians not taking direct part in hostilities.

There’s more, but you get the point: kidnapping civilians is a  war crime. It is a crime against humanity (Article 7, above). Forcibly tranferring Jewish children from Jewish to Arab hands (that’s what this kidnapping involved) is another war crime called genocide (Article 6). Severely depriving these three children of their liberty is another war crime. It is a crime against humanity (Article 7). Intentionally directing an attack upon these three civilians—who take no direct part in Arab-Israel hostilities—is another war crime (Article 8). Causing these three Jews serious bodily or mental harm because they are members of a ‘group’ is a war crime called genocide (Article 6).

Over the last year, Arabs from Hamas and Fatah areas—with Hamas and Fatah blessing—have committed multiple acts of aggression against Israel’s civilian population (a war crime under Article 8). Arabs have attempted no less than 23 kidnappings against Jews in Israel. These attacks constitute ‘crimes against humanity’ because they represented ‘a widespread or systematic attack directed against [Israel’s] civilian population‘(Article 7).

This is not rocket science. You don’t have to be a legal Einstein to figure this out. A simple google search will do.

Nevertheless, the EU and the UN have swept all of this ‘under the rug’. They have yet to accuse the Arab of anything. But they are quick to warn Israel that it might be committing war crimes.

That’s not right. It reveals that the EU and the UN are not objective ‘peace-makers’. Clearly, they have cast objectivity aside to choose sides.

The UN and EU are not moral arbiters. They are hypocrites. Under the guise of ‘peace’, they support the Arab war against Israel.

They are enemies of truth. They are the enemies of Israel.