A United Nations (U.N.) official said that Israel does not have the right to defend itself against Hamas.
Francesca Albanese, who serves as the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights’s special rapporteur for the Palestinians, tweeted, “Under Int’l Law Israel’s actions in Gaza cannot qualify as self-defense.”
She argued that under international law, self-defense is a ” term of art, with a narrower meaning than in common language.”
Albanese said that self-defense is:
“(1) legitimate use of force
(2) by a state to protect itself against an attack
(3) from another state.”
Albanese further argued that the use of self-defense is “permissible solely to repel an armed attack by another State,” noting that Hamas operates within an “occupied territory,” not a state.
“Threats from armed groups from within occ. territory give state the RIGHT TO PROTECT ITSELF, but not to wage war against the state from which the armed group emanates,” the official asserted.
Following the initial attack against Israel on October 7, Albanese said she was “horrified by the narrative” that emphasized Hamas’ role.
Speaking to Al Jazeera, Albanese stated, “But before anything else, I am horrified by the narrative, by the discourse, because it is possible, and necessary, to stand both with the Palestinians and the Israelis without resorting to ethical relativism, to selective outrage or worse, calls for violence.”
