Nimer Sultany Profile picture
Jun 15, 2024 20 tweets 6 min read Read on X
A thread on Israeli journalists and "direct & public incitement to commit genocide" against Palestinians in Gaza:

In January the @CIJ_ICJ ordered Israel to take all measures to prevent & punish incitement to commit genocide. The Court "reaffirmed" this in March and May.
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In South Africa's 29 May public dossier that was submitted to the UN Security Council, Annex III includes 7 pages on incitement to genocide by 5 prominent journalists and pundits.
The importance of these examples lies in the fact that they repeatedly and publicly, over 8 months, continued to incite to genocide, and genocidal acts, including as we shall see more recent examples.
Their incitement promoted the view that all Palestinian civilians in Gaza are killable, that it is permissible to target innocent civilians because they do not exist in Gaza, that all of Gaza should be wiped out. Image
One of those mentioned by South Africa is Shimon Riklin of Channel 14.
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Recently, after the massacre in Al-Nusseirat, Riklin retweeted a long post by journalist Schlesinger that denies the existence of "uninvolved" (i.e. innocents) in Gaza (see below) and commented that destroying the entire Gaza is a religious duty. Image
Yehuda Schlesinger, "a reporter for Israel Hayom, one of the most widely distributed newspapers in Israel", repeatedly tweeted that there "are no innocents in Gaza" and "no ordinary civilians".
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Recently, 11 June, he repeated his claim that "there are no uninvolved in Gaza" - a euphemism for "all Palestinians in Gaza are killable and deserve to be killed". Image
In fact, on 9 June, he wrote a quasi-manifesto seeking to show how broad and systematic is the lack of innocence and lack of civilian status in Gaza: voters, those who cheered, doctors, UNRWA workers, all 2.3 million. All not innocent.

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As mentioned above, another prominent journalist Shimon Riklin concluded from this mini-manifesto that all of Gaza should be destroyed.
Another prominent journalist that South Africa includes in its submission, is Zvi Yehezkeli, who until recently worked for Channel 13. Image
Another example is Almog Boker of Channel 13, known for repeated calls to destroy all of Gaza and rejecting the distinction between Hamas and the civilian population.
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On 9 June, Boker jumped on the rumor that a hostage was held in the house of "Al-Jazeera journalist", which Al-Jazeera denied, to repeat the mantra that the family of anyone "involved" and even their "silent" neighbours are killable. Image
Important to note that while Channel 14 and Israel Hayom are pro-Netanyahu outlets, Channel 13 is not, but is considered a relatively more liberal channel. Thus, the incitement to genocide extends beyond the Ben-Gvir and Netanyahu crowds.
As Israel's prominent TV “expert” on Arab and Palestinian affairs for over 2 decades, where he promoted racism against Arabs & Muslims, Yehezkeli’s statements carry a special weight and impact.
As one Haaretz journalist wrote on 28 December, Yehezkeli represents "the spirit of the time and place". Image
The legal importance of these examples is threefold:

1. they show Israel's lack of punishment and prevention of incitement to genocide. Quite the contrary, these prominent journalists continue to be provided with platforms to spew hatred, over 8 months.
Note that legally that a conviction of "direct & public incitement" does not require proving that the result was achieved. The content of the message is sufficient. Unless, incitement is considered as a form of "complicity in genocide", which is a separate violation.
2. They serve as another indication of Israel's violation of the ICJ provisional measures in Jan, March, and May 2024, solidifying Israel's status as a rogue state.
3. They also provide a further indication of Israel's violation of Israel's duty to prevent genocide. This duty imposes a "positive obligation" on states, meaning that they are required to act to ensure that violations of the Genocide Convention do not occur.

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More from @NimerSultany

May 24
In Haaretz Hebrew, 22 May, former Israeli PM Olmert says he used to think that the mass killing of civilians in Gaza was a result of a "tragic war" & he denied the charges of genocide & war crimes, but now he thinks: it is an intentional annihilation. archive.ph/3vvOiImage
Olmert: "What is happening in the Gaza Strip in recent weeks has nothing to do with a legitimate war goal. Our fighters are being sent by the state leadership — and the army leadership that obeys it... in an illegitimate military campaign." Image
Olmert: Israel has adopted a deliberate policy of starvation
archive.ph/3vvOiImage
Read 11 tweets
May 21
Those who are surprised by Yair Golan's comments ("killing babies as a hobby"), or are inclined to dismiss Feiglin as a marginal figure, have not been being attention. Search the word "children" in South Africa's submission to UNSC in Feb 2025: 🧵/1
2. Recall that Netanyahu, Gallant framed it from the start as a war against the "children of darkness" and that endless statements by politicians, soldiers, journalists, public figures repeatedly proclaimed: there are no innocents in Gaza, where the majority is children.
3. The genocide did not start after Israel broke the cease fire, as "revisionists" would have it: Centrist Knesset members were clear from the start: Image
Read 19 tweets
May 11
The Guardian, 18 months late: "What is this, if not genocidal?"
theguardian.com/commentisfree/…
"International law moves slowly, and signatories to the convention, including the US and UK, are required not only to punish but to prevent genocide. The court of public opinion is reaching its own conclusion."

So why did you wait till now?
"The ICJ ruled in January last year that there was a “plausible risk” of genocide. Amnesty International, a UN special committee and leading scholars, including within Israel, have concluded that genocide is taking place."

And these were not good enough for you to say it then?
Read 10 tweets
May 5
Israel said it will "burn", "erase", "flatten" Gaza since October 2023, but western media and western officials downplayed and ignored genocidal intent. They pretended it is a "war". Here is a NYT article on 15 November 2023. Image
And here is @ChrisMcGreal on 16 October 2023 theguardian.com/commentisfree/…
@ChrisMcGreal The facts were also clear, here is CNN on 22 December 2023 edition.cnn.com/gaza-israel-bi…
Read 5 tweets
May 5
South Africa's submission to UNSC in Feb. 2025 did not receive the attention it deserves. This is one of the most publicly-available comprehensive documentation of Israel's intent to commit to genocide as evidenced by its pattern of conduct and statements. 🧵 1/ Image
2) South Africa highlights 10 patterns of conduct that are prevalent from the publicly available evidence and that indicate the existence of a genocidal intent: Image
3) A. The pattern of Israel targeting the vulnerable, including children, women, the wounded and disabled, and those who have repeatedly been displaced and are seeking shelter Image
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Read 30 tweets
Mar 13
UN Commission: “There is no escape from the conclusion that Israel has employed sexual and gender-based violence against Palestinians to terrorise them and perpetuate a system of oppression that undermines their right to self-determination.” ohchr.org/en/press-relea…
"Specific forms of sexual and gender-based violence – such as forced public stripping and nudity, sexual harassment including threats of rape, as well as sexual assault – comprise part of the Israeli Security Forces’ standard operating procedures toward Palestinians."
"Other forms of sexual and gender-based violence, including rape and violence to the genitals, were committed either under explicit orders or with implicit encouragement by Israel’s top civilian and military leadership, the report said."
Read 17 tweets

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