Genocide is a concept that is not only being used ubiquitously nowadays but is being utilised as a tool of statecraft against adversaries by different political regimes around the world. The etymology says the word genocide is made up of two words – the Greek word Geno meaning race and the English word Cide meaning killing.
The idea of genocide in socio-cultural history dates back to antiquity and manifested itself in certain important religious texts. The principal source of opposition was to the Amalek, an important figure in Biblical mythology who was regarded as an enemy of the Israelites – God’s chosen people. In modern psychological and cultural terms, Amalek is the personification of all evil in the world, which is expressed in negative human emotions such as greed, hate, and jealousy. Carl Jung, the Swiss psychologist and psychoanalyst, described such feelings using a new term, ‘shadow’.
Genocide has been an integral part of global social and political history. Some of the notable instances of genocide include the destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans in 70 CE, the mass extermination campaigns during the Crusades, and the massacres of the Mayan and Aztec empires by the Portuguese and Spanish conquistadors in the ancient and medieval periods. Colonialism, undertaken by the Euro-Atlantic countries was responsible for the wiping out of many indigenous cultures around the world, something that J Sai Deepak has well documented in his book India, That is Bharat.
But the most egregious form of genocide was the Holocaust, undertaken by the diabolical Nazi regime of Adolf Hitler and his acolytes during the Second World War.
In recent times, the word genocide has acquired a rather political tone with countries routinely accusing others of genocide. One such example is Israel.
The October 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel has been billed by military experts as the largest organised raid inside Israel since the formation of the Jewish country in 1948. As a result, 1,200 people were killed and some 250 taken hostage
Military Campaign
October 7, 2023, marked a dark chapter in the history of the Jewish nation. Hamas terrorists conducted, what has been billed by military experts as the largest organised raid inside Israel since the formation of the Jewish country in 1948. As a result, 1,200 people were killed and some 250 taken hostage. Thus, started Israel’s brutal and unprecedented military assault on Gaza. The outcome is heart-wrenching.
Almost 90% of the tiny enclave has been destroyed and almost the entirety of the population has been rendered homeless. Every day, survival is becoming a battle. Starvation, disease etc., loom large. The UN has called the situation one of the ‘gravest crises’ in recent times.
Decoding the Claim
Raphael Lemkin, a Polish lawyer and a peace activist wrote the influential book Axis Rule in Occupied Europe highlighting the holocaust and the legalities of how to tackle such crises in the future. His scholarly work contributed directly to the formulation of the Convention on the Prevention & Punishment of the Crime of Genocide signed by the United Nations General Assembly in 1948 and entered into force in 1951.
International experts have stated clearly during the entire duration of the ongoing conflict that Hamas has been using civilian centres such as hospitals, schools and residential areas as well as human shields to camouflage their devious operations
As per the convention, genocide is defined as, “any act committed with the intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial, or religious group”. It calls for punishing:
- Genocide
- Conspiracy to commit genocide
- Direct and public incitement to commit genocide
- Attempt to commit genocide
- Complicity in genocide
The nature of the charges of genocide against Israel is grave. However, it becomes necessary to interpret the reality of the ground objectively. International experts have stated clearly during the entire duration of the ongoing conflict that Hamas has been using civilian centres like hospitals, schools and residential areas as well as human shields to camouflage their devious operations.
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has made it clear that India not only condemns the terror attack on Israel but also highlights the need to ensure that dialogue and diplomacy leading to a two-state solution is the best way forward
Further, a key aspect of the convention is that there is a concerted need to ‘convince’ the international community that there is an inherent motive to conduct a genocide of a population, so far the international community has not been able to find convincing ‘proof’ of genocidal intentions on the part of Israeli Defence Forces or for that matter the Israeli populace of the Palestinian enclave.
The sole responsibility for the suffering in Gaza lies with Hamas, the External Affairs Minister of India Dr S. Jaishankar has made it clear that India not only condemns the terror attack on Israel but also highlights the need to ensure that dialogue and diplomacy which leads to a two-state solution is the best way forward.
Hence any assessment of a conflict of a magnitude like the Israel-Gaza war must be made from an empirical, objective point of view and not let our subjective biases cloud the assessment.
–The writer is currently working as a Research Associate at Defence Research and Studies (dras.in) and is a columnist. The views expressed are personal and do not necessarily reflect the views of Raksha Anirveda
