Islamic Law

Islamic Law

Deficiencies of Iran's legal system and international law in preventing international crimes: a case study of Gaza

Document Type : Original Article

Author
Mohammad Saleh Taskhiri
Assistant Professor, Department of International Law, Faculty of Law, Qom University, Qom, Iran
10.22034/ilaw.2024.2026041.3413
Abstract
In response to catastrophic military attacks, international law, while providing for the "international responsibility" of states, has created "international criminal liability" for the military and political leaders. These measures, which are included under the humanitarian law or the law of armed conflicts (domestic and international), are aimed at reducing the pain caused by war by limiting the use of military tools. After the attack of the Israeli military forces in the Gaza Strip, its expansion to other parts of Palestine Territory in 2023-2024, the killing of tens of thousands of civilians and the destruction of countless civilian targets, the question arose that despite the legal mechanisms for prosecuting Israeli international crimes, what Are the obstacles which cannot be prevented from committing these crimes again? This article deals with two categories of domestic and international legal obstacles for the legal prosecution of Israeli crimes from a legal perspective and with an analytical-descriptive method. According to the findings of this article, "Iran's non-membership in the Statute of the International Criminal Court", "lack of criminalization of international crimes in domestic legislation" and "non-recognition of Israel" are three factors that make Iran face problems in legal prosecution. In addition, "the weak international position of the Palestinian state", "Israel's interest in using legal tools to its military interests" (warfare) and "the lack of legal bases necessary to support the resistance" (legal convergence) are three key obstacles to prevent the aforementioned crimes. Therefore, while addressing each of the domestic and international obstacles from a legal point of view, this article has examined solutions.
Keywords
International Crimes
Legal Convergence
International Criminal Court
Lawfare
Criminalization

Subjects

  1. اکرمی، روح‌اللّه؛ «موقعیت فقه حنفی در حقوق کیفری کشورهای اسلامی، مطالعه موردی: افغانستان، سودان و امارات متحده عربی»، فصلنامه دین و قانون؛ ش10، بهار ۱۴۰۱، ص10ـ26.
  2. امیریان، محمدباقر؛ «حقوق بین‌الملل و اختلاف اسرائیل و فلسطین»، مطالعات بین‌المللی؛ ش3، زمستان ۱۳۹۵، زمستان، ص21ـ40.
  3. بابایی، محمد و میرعلی میریوسفی؛ «تأثیر پیمان صلح آبراهام بر مجموعه امنیتی منطقه‌ای خاورمیانه»، فصلنامه مطالعات فرهنگ دیپلماسی؛ ش1، بهار ۱۴۰۱، ص70ـ92.
  4. بذّار، وحید؛ «مسئولیت بین‌المللی دولت کانادا به‌واسطه نقض مصونیت دولت ایران درنتیجه توقیف حساب‌های بانکی و فروش اموال ایران به منظور اجرای آرای دادگاه‌های امریکا»، مجله حقوقی بین‌المللی؛ ش37، پاییز ـ زمستان ۱۳۹۹، ص265ـ282.
  5. پورقهرمانی، بابک، جمال بیگی و فاطمه احدی؛ ایران و چالش‌های حقوقی بین‌المللی (حقوق بین‌الملل کیفری)؛ تهران: میزان، ۱۳۹۵.
  6. دهقانی، حمیدرضا؛ «قطعنامه تقسیم فلسطین مبنای ‏ "راه‌حل دو دولت" و ملاکی برای "راه‌حل همه‌پرسی"»، فصلنامه سیاست خارجی؛ ش23، زمستان ۱۳۸۸، ص1015ـ1032.
  7. ذاکرحسین، هادی؛ آیین پیش‌دادرسی دیوان کیفری بین‌المللی؛ تهران: مؤسسه مطالعات و پژوهش‌های حقوقی شهر دانش، ۱۳۹۹.
  8. رمضانی قوام‌آبادی، محمدحسین؛ «از شناسایی دولت فلسطین تا عضویت در دیوان بین‌الملل کیفری»، فصلنامه دولت‌پژوهی (مجله دانشکده حقوق و علوم سیاسی دانشگاه علامه)؛ ش7، پاییز ۱۳۹۵، ص۹ـ31.
  9. شریعت‌باقری، محمدجواد؛ اسناد دیوان کیفری بین‌المللی؛ تهران: نشر جنگل، ۱۳۹۰.
  10. محقق داماد، سیدمصطفی؛ «الحاق ایران به دیوان بین‌الملل کیفری ازمنظر قاعده نفی سبیل»، جمهوری اسلامی ایران و دیوان بین‌الملل کیفری؛ تهران: پژوهشکده تحقیقات استراتژیک، ۱۳۹۰، ص437ـ522.
  11. مشهدی، علی و محمدصالح تسخیری؛ بایسته‌های حقوق سازمان‌های بین‌المللی؛ چ۲، تهران: خرسندی، ۱۳۹۳.
  12. مهرپور، حسین؛ «بررسی موانع شرعی الحاق ایران به اساسنامه دیوان بین‌الملل کیفری»، جمهوری اسلامی ایران و دیوان بین‌الملل کیفری؛ تهران: پژوهشکده تحقیقات استراتژیک، ۱۳۹۰، ص401ـ435.
  13. نورالدین‌کیا، فضل‌اللّه؛ خاطرات خدمت در فلسطین (1325ـ1320)؛ تهران: نشر آبی، ۱۳۷۷.
  14. Armstead Jr, J. Holmes (1997), “The International Criminal Court: History, Development and Status”, Santa Clara Law Review, 38, 745. ‏
  15. Bachman, Jeffrey S (2020), "Four Schools of Thought on the Relationship Between War and Genocide,", Journal of Genocide Research,22, 4: 479-501.
  16. Badarin, Emile (2020), "States Recognition in Foreign Policy: The Case of Sweden's Recognition of Palestine", Foreign policy analysis,16, 1: 78-97.
  17. Bassiouni, M, Cherif and William A, Schabas (2021), eds, The Legislative History of the International Criminal Court: Introduction, Analysis, and Integrated Text (3 vols), Vol, 18, Netherland, Brill.
  18. Bensouda, Fatou (2021), Statement of ICC Prosecutor respecting an investigation of the Situation in Palestine.
  19. Bradford, A,, & Posner, E, A (2011), Universal Exceptionalism in International Law, Harvard International Law Journal, Spring, 52 (1), 1-54,
  20. CERD (1996), Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, General Recommendation XXI on the Right to Self-Determination, 1996 (Forty-Eighth Session, A/51/18)
  21. Crawford, James, and Simon Olleson (2003), "The nature and forms of international responsibility", International law, 445.
  22. Crawford, James (2006), The creation of states in international law, London, Oxford University Press.
  23. European Union Statement (2020), delivered at the 75th United Nations General Assembly Plenary on the presentation of the resolution on "Assistance to the Palestinian people" under agenda item 73 (b) at 11 December 2020
  24. Fischer, Nina (2021), "Palestinian Non-Violent Resistance and the Apartheid Analogy: Framing Israeli Policy in the 1960s and 1970s,", Interventions,23, 8: 1124-1139. ‏
  25. Ginsburg, T (2020), “Authoritarian international law”, American Journal of International Law, Summer, 114 (2), 221-260.
  26. Greenstein, Ran (2020), "Israel, Palestine, and Apartheid", Insight Turkey,22, 1: 73-92.
  27. Hammond, Jeremy R (2010), "The Myth of the UN Creation of Israel", Foreign Policy Journal,26 ‏
  28. High Commissioner for Human Rights (2024), Annual report of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and reports, the Office of the High Commissioner and the Secretary-General, 13 February 2024 (A/HRC/55/28)
  29. HRC (1994), Human Right Committee, General Comment, No, 23 (50) About Article 27.
  30. Human Rights Council (2009), Human Rights in Palestine and Other Occupied Arab Territories, Report of the United Nations Fact-Finding Mission on the Gaza Conflict, A/HRC/12/48 25 September 2009.
  31. Human Rights Council (2024), Report of the independent international fact-finding mission on the Islamic Republic of Iran, 26 February–5 April 2024
  32. Johannsen, M, AbuZayyad, Z, El Ouazghari, K, Harik, J., Kurz, A, & Rabah, J (2011), “The Reconciliation of Hamas and Fatah”, Policy Brief, 3, 1-8. ‏
  33. Kerr‌‌, Christa-Gaye (2020), "Sovereign immunity, the AU, and the ICC: Legitimacy undermined", Michign Journal of International Law, 41: 195.
  34. Koh, H. H (2003), “On American Exceptionalism”, Stanford Law Review (Yale Law School Legal Scholarship Repository), 55, 1479-1527‏‏
  35. Koskenniemi, Martti (2017), The politics of international law, The Nature of International Law, London, Routledge, 355-384. ‏
  36. Marchand, C., Uwashema, C., & Deprez, C (2020), Possible Impediments to Justice for Colonial Crimes: A Belgian Perspective, Torkel Opsahl Academic Epublisher, Italy.
  37. Mayans-Hermida, Beatriz & and Barbora Holá (2020), "Balancing ‘the International’and ‘the Domestic’ Sanctions under the ICC Principle of Complementarity", Journal of International Criminal Justice, 5: 1103-1130.
  38. Nolte, G., & Aust, H. P (2013), “European exceptionalism”, Global Constitutionalism (Cambridge University Press), 2 (3), 407-436.
  39. Ochs, S. L (2020), “Propaganda Warfare on the International Criminal Court”, Michigan Journal of International Law, 42: 581.
  40. Olalia, Eder. U (2005), The Status in International Law of National Liberation Movements and Their Use of Armed Force, SMA-IAPL.
  41. Oral Statement of the Islamic Republic of Iran in advisory proceedings concerning (2024), Legal Consequences arising from the Policies and Practices of Israel in the Occupied Palestinian Territory including East Jerusalem, 22 February 2024
  42. Poissonnier, Ghislain, and David, Eric (2020), "Israeli Settlements in the West Bank, a War Crime”, La Revue des droits de l’homme. Revue du Centre de recherches et d’études sur les droits fondamentaux, 17. ‏
  43. Randhawa, Suwita Hani (2022), "International criminalization and the historical emergence of international crimes", International Theory, 14 (3): 460-502.‏
  44. Reynolds, John (2023), Apartheid and International Law in Palestine. In Prolonged Occupation and International Law (pp. 104-132). Netherland, Brill Nijhoff. ‏
  45. Sakran, S (2019), The Legal Consequences of Limited Statehood: Palestine in Multilateral Frameworks, London, Routledge.‏
  46. Silverburg, Sanford R, (1977), “The Palestine Liberation Organization in the United Nations: Implications for International Law and Relations” Cambridge Israel Law Review, 12 (3), 365-392.
  47. South Africa (2023), Application Instituting Proceedings before International Criminal Court, 29 December 2023
  48. UNGA Resolution (2012), Resolution adopted by the General Assembly on 29 November 2012 (A/RES/67/19)
  49. UNICEF (2024), UNICEF in the State of Palestine 2023 Year End SitRep, Reporting Period: 1 January to 31 December 2023
  50. Wang, Jia (2021), “Certain Iranian Assets: The Judgment on Preliminary Objections and the Terrorism Exception to State Immunity”, US-China Lw Review, 18: 162.‏
  51. WHO (2024), Multi-Country Appeal: Occupied Palestinian Territory (oPt), Global humanitarian Overview 2024
  52. Schneider, L (2020), “The International Criminal Court (ICC) –a postcolonial tool for Western states to control Africa”, Journal of International Criminal Law (JICL), 1 (1), 90-109.
Islamic Law
Volume 22, Issue 84
Spring 2025
Pages 95-128