I have been listening to interviews coming out of Israel and hearing people describe the horror of bombs falling on their neighborhoods.
They’re complaining about the kinds of weapons being used. They are saying that cluster munitions violate international law. They are saying civilian areas should never be targeted and Iran is committing war crimes.
Now, on a basic human level, that reaction is understandable. Nobody wants bombs falling on their homes. No one wants their children running to shelters in the middle of the night. Nobody wants civilians to die. War is terrifying when it suddenly arrives at your own doorstep.
But what makes these statements so jarring is the profound historical and moral irony embedded in them.
For months, and in truth for YEARS, the world has watched Israel rain destruction on Gaza, one of the most densely populated places on earth. We have seen entire apartment blocks flattened. Hospitals hit. Schools reduced to rubble. Refugee camps bombed. Civilians buried under concrete while rescue workers dig with their bare hands because the heavy equipment has been destroyed or fuel is unavailable. Tens of thousands of people have died.
International aid groups, human rights organizations, and even UN officials have repeatedly raised alarms about violations of international humanitarian law, including the disproportionate use of force and the targeting or reckless endangerment of civilian infrastructure.
Israel’s official explanation has been “security,” “self-defense,” “collateral damage,” and “that’s just war.”
But now that missiles are falling on Israeli cities, suddenly everybody’s an international law scholar. Now folks are on camera talking about cluster munitions, civilian protections, and war crimes. Now folks care about the Geneva Conventions.
The rules of war don’t magically activate the moment the bombs land in your neighborhood. If it’s a war crime when it happens to you, it was a war crime when it was happening to Palestinians too.
