Ted Rall: Israel Is Not Acting in “Self-Defense”

Ted Rall discusses Israel Is Not Acting in “Self-Defense”

Israel’s claim to self-defense ended hours after the Hamas attack, when the IDF had killed or routed all Hamas fighters on Israeli territory and retaken control of the areas that had previously been overrun. The status quo ante was restored as of October 8th, with the exception of the more than 200 hostages seized from Israel and now held by Hamas in Gaza.

After Israel secured the areas broached by Hamas, a different body of law applied. Israel’s bombing campaign, which began on October 8th, might only be justified as a preemptive act of self-defense—a military campaign to prevent future terrorist attacks by Hamas. The Bush Administration claimed that its invasion of Iraq fell into this category, but that war clearly failed the so-called “Caroline test” formulated by the U.S. in the 19th century and which now guides international law. In 1837, Secretary of State Daniel Webster declared that a nation-state could only justify the use of military force in a case of imminent threat that was “instant, overwhelming, leaving no choice of means, and no moment of deliberation” and, these conditions being satisfied, military action should be proportional: “nothing unreasonable or excessive; since the act, justified by the necessity of self-defense, must be limited by that necessity, and kept clearly within it.”

Self-defense is not a blank check for unlimited vengeance or retribution. Being angry or insulted or traumatized does not justify revenge. A nation-state is only permitted to apply the bare minimum of force necessary to repel or neutralize a threat.

Emphasis Mine

One should remember that Nazi Germany claimed that the extermination of Jews, Homosexuals, Gypsies, Russians, Poles, etc. was also done in 'self-defense'. The use of the term, 'self-defense', is meant to shut down critical thinking and deflect criticism.

Genocide is genocide whether it is done by Nazi Germany or Israel.