Our Enemies Commit Genocide, Not Our Friends

PALESTINE - ISRAEL, 17 Mar 2025

Sebastian Shehadi | The New Arab - TRANSCEND Media Service

11 Mar 2025 – Leading genocide scholar and lawyer William Schabas on why Israel’s genocide in Gaza, including its self-defense rhetoric, are unlikely to succeed in court; the double standards applied to Israel’s horrific crimes in Gaza.

As both an academic and legal practitioner, there are a few individuals who have studied genocide the way William Schabas has for over 35 years.

At the start of his career, he was among the first Western voices to warn of an impending genocide in Rwanda back in 1993. Today, he is professor of international law at Middlesex University and professor of international human rights at Leiden University.

Canada-born Schabas, who lost relatives in the Holocaust, also sits on the advisory board of the Israel Law Review and the Journal of International Criminal Justice, and has published dozens of books, including Genocide in International Law: The Crime of Crimes (Cambridge University Press).

As a legal practitioner, Schabas was one of the commissioners on the Sierra Leone Truth and Reconciliation Commission, which reported to the UN in 2004, as well as a commissioner on the Iran Tribunal Truth Commission in 2012. Two years later, he was appointed the head of a UN Committee investigating the role of Israel in the 2014 Gaza war, and was then subsequently involved in the International Court of Justice (ICJ) case between Croatia and Serbia, regarding claims of genocide.

In 2019, Schabas represented the state of Myanmar at the ICJ, arguing that the crimes against the Rohingya did not meet the threshold of genocide, prompting criticism from friends and foes. Of these criticisms, Schabas told Reuters: “I am hired as a lawyer, they’re my client… Both sides have a right to have competent representation.”

TO CONTINUE READING Go to Original – newarab.com

Join the BDS-BOYCOTT, DIVESTMENT, SANCTIONS campaign to protest the Israeli barbaric siege of Gaza, illegal occupation of the Palestine nation’s territory, the apartheid wall, its inhuman and degrading treatment of the Palestinian people, and the more than 7,000 Palestinian men, women, elderly and children arbitrarily locked up in Israeli prisons.

DON’T BUY PRODUCTS WHOSE BARCODE STARTS WITH 729, which indicates that it is produced in Israel. DO YOUR PART! MAKE A DIFFERENCE!

7 2 9: BOYCOTT FOR JUSTICE!

Share this article: email mastodon facebook 🔗 copy link

DISCLAIMER: The statements, views and opinions expressed in pieces republished here are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of TMS. In accordance with title 17 U.S.C. section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. TMS has no affiliation whatsoever with the originator of this article nor is TMS endorsed or sponsored by the originator. “GO TO ORIGINAL” links are provided as a convenience to our readers and allow for verification of authenticity. However, as originating pages are often updated by their originating host sites, the versions posted may not match the versions our readers view when clicking the “GO TO ORIGINAL” links. This site contains copyrighted material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. We are making such material available in our efforts to advance understanding of environmental, political, human rights, economic, democracy, scientific, and social justice issues, etc. We believe this constitutes a ‘fair use’ of any such copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. For more information go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml. If you wish to use copyrighted material from this site for purposes of your own that go beyond ‘fair use’, you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.

There are no comments so far.