Is Hezbollah using civilians as human shields against Israel? What does the law say?

Sept. 24, 2024, 12:56 p.m.

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Is Hezbollah using civilians as a human shield?

That’s what Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has claimed.

Netanyahu made this statement on the same day Israel announced it had targeted over 800 Hezbollah positions in Lebanon.

Lebanon's health ministry reported that Israeli airstrikes have resulted in over 550 deaths, including 50 children.

Hezbollah, backed by Iran, began firing rockets at Israel in solidarity with its Palestinian ally, Hamas, in October. This followed Hamas's unprecedented attack on southern Israel, which triggered the war in Gaza.

The conflict has escalated in recent days, and many fear it could transform into a full-scale war engulfing West Asia.

However, is Hezbollah actually employing civilians as human shields? What about Hamas in Gaza? And how does the law address this issue?

Let’s take a closer look:

First, let’s take a look at what the law says.

The International Committee of the Red Cross states that using civilians or other protected individuals to safeguard specific locations, areas, or military forces from military action is a violation of international law.

The Geneva Convention's Additional Protocol I forbids using individuals, including prisoners of war and civilians, as human shields.

This prohibition applies to all states, regardless of their current or past status as parties to the Geneva Convention.

The well-known US Military Tribunal at Nuremberg in 1948 prosecuted Nazi officials for using prisoners of war as human shields.

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Additional Protocol II of the Geneva Convention stipulates that “the civilian population and individual civilians are entitled to general protection from the dangers arising from military operations.”

In a recent case, the International Criminal Tribunal found the defendants in the 1995 Karadžić and Mladić trial guilty of using UN peacekeepers as human shields.

Advertisement The court determined that those who detained peacekeepers against their will at ammunition bunkers, a radar site, and a communication center – all locations that NATO could target – were guilty of this practice.

Al Jazeera reports that there are three categories of human shields: those who participate willingly, those who are forced, and those who are unintentionally put in harm's way.

The first choose to position themselves in front of a target. The second are compelled to do so to stop an attack. The third become shields unknowingly due to their proximity to the action.

While international human rights law does not explicitly prohibit the use of human shields, this practice violates the right to life without arbitrary deprivation.

International human rights organizations, including the UN Human Rights Committee and regional bodies, have emphasized the obligation of states to protect human life.

The United Nations has condemned the practice of using human shields in countries such as Liberia, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Tajikistan, and the former Yugoslavia.

Is Hezbollah using civilians as a human shield?

This is the claim made by Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in his address to the people of Lebanon on Monday (September 23).

“Hezbollah has placed rockets in your living rooms and missiles in your garage,” Netanyahu stated.

“For your safety, please evacuate the area now. Once our operation concludes, you can return home safely,” Netanyahu urged the public.

Advertisement "Hezbollah's actions pose a direct threat to your safety and the safety of your loved ones. Please stay vigilant and heed our warnings.”

On Tuesday, the Israel Defense Forces released images and videos that they claim provide evidence of Hezbollah placing weapons in people’s homes.

The IDF shared an image of a long-range rocket, mounted on a hydraulic system and aimed at Israeli civilians, ready for immediate launch, according to a post on X (formerly Twitter). "This rocket is positioned to harm civilians at a moment's notice," the IDF stated.

“This is just one of the 1,300 targets, including long-range cruise missiles, heavy-weight rockets and UAVs, that were destroyed today in Lebanon. These weapons were intended to cause significant damage across Israel,” the statement continued.

The IDF also shared a video of its spokesperson explaining how Hezbollah was carrying out these actions.

“IDF Spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari clarifies how Hezbollah utilizes civilian infrastructure to store weapons and employs the Lebanese population as human shields,” the statement declared.

On Monday, Israel sent text messages to residents of Lebanon urging them to evacuate the area.

What about Hamas and Gaza?

Israel previously accused Hamas of using human shields in Gaza.

The Times of Israel cited Israeli army spokesperson Daniel Hagari, who asserted that the use of human shields is a “core element of Hamas's terrorist operations.”

Since the conflict in Gaza began, Israel has repeatedly instructed citizens to relocate to different areas via mobile communications and leaflets, aiming to minimize civilian casualties.

The IDF also released audio of a Palestinian man criticizing Hamas for firing on civilians trying to escape, according to The Guardian.

The IDF previously released recordings of interrogations with two Hamas members who, according to the IDF, were involved in the October 7 attack.

One Hamas fighter, identified as Amer Abu Awash, a member of Hamas's elite Nukhba force, when questioned about the Hamas tunnel network, stated, “Many of them are concealed within hospitals. Take Shifa Hospital, for instance, it has underground levels... It's a large facility that can be used for hiding things.”

When questioned about Hamas's use of hospitals, Awash responded, “It's a tactic to prevent attacks.”

According to the newspaper, evidence suggests that Hamas is operating from public buildings.

However, this is made more complex by the fact that Gaza is a densely populated urban area.

Hamas, however, has rejected the allegations.

What do experts say?

Experts have informed Al Jazeera that these warnings allow Israel to claim Hamas is using the population as human shields.

“Over time, proximity shielding can persist much longer than either voluntary or involuntary shielding, as the latter two are limited to the period during which the civilian acts or is compelled to act as a shield,” Neve Gordon, co-author of Human Shields: A History of People in the Line of Fire, told the outlet.

Gordon, an international law professor at Queen Mary University of London, stated that the warnings are issued to “reduce the scope of violence permissible in that area.”

Marc Weller, an international law and international constitutional studies chair at the University of Cambridge, told the outlet, “Knocking on a building [to ask its residents to evacuate] might be reasonable, but informing a million people to vacate because you are bombing everything is unreasonable.”

"Israel cannot fulfill its responsibility to distinguish between combatants and civilians by simply expecting civilians to move out of harm's way. This shifts the onus of protection onto the victims instead of the attackers."

With inputs from agencies