As Israel’s war on Gaza continues, a new battleground is emerging — not in bombed-out streets but in courtrooms across Europe, Latin America and beyond. From Brussels to Berlin, a growing number of legal activists are building what they hope will become an unstoppable wave of accountability for the 70,000-plus Palestinians killed and countless others displaced, injured or traumatized. The question is no longer whether Israel will face legal consequences but when — and from how many directions.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is doing his best to sabotage US President Donald Trump’s peace plan for the embattled enclave. But as various interlocutors work to pave a path forward — one that would install a Palestinian committee to run Gaza, deploy a multinational stabilization force there and push Israeli forces out of the Strip — an end to the war should not mean allowing Israel to walk away from the bloodbath it has inflicted on more than 2 million Palestinians.

On the contrary, there has to be a process that holds Israel accountable for the tens of thousands of war crimes and crimes against humanity that were committed and sadly continue to take place on a daily basis, even after a ceasefire agreement came into effect last October. To be precise, an international effort must be launched to bring to justice every person in the Israeli political and military establishments who has either enabled or been directly responsible for every documented crime that has taken place in Gaza since Israel waged its war.

After much resistance and many attempts to distort the facts, Israel’s military has finally admitted that Gaza’s death toll has surpassed 70,000. That figure coincides with Gaza Health Ministry estimates, which now stand at more than 71,000, with an important caveat: there remain thousands of Palestinians missing, believed to be under the rubble or in Israeli detention facilities. This figure includes more than 20,000 children who have been killed by Israel.

There has to be a process that holds Israel accountable for the tens of thousands of war crimes committed in Gaza

Osama Al-Sharif

Israel is already facing two international legal challenges: a charge of genocide is being investigated by the International Court of Justice and arrest warrants have been issued against Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant by the International Criminal Court for crimes against humanity and war crimes. But the former may take many months and even years to make a final ruling. So far, Netanyahu has evaded capture and is unlikely to be handed over to The Hague. In addition, the Trump administration and the US Congress have imposed sanctions on International Court of Justice judges and on the International Criminal Court prosecutor, in addition to issuing direct threats against all those involved.

Israeli war crimes and brazen violations of international laws and the Geneva Conventions extend throughout the Occupied Territories, including the West Bank and East Jerusalem. Palestinians have been killed, imprisoned without trial or even charges, terrorized, tortured, raped, had their homes destroyed, lands confiscated, and deported illegally for decades. Human rights organizations, including Israeli ones, have tens of thousands of documents incriminating successive Israeli governments. It is now time for individual cases to be brought to light and pursued through legal channels.

The Palestinian Authority has been intimidated into sitting on the sidelines and not lodging cases on behalf of thousands of Palestinian victims. But there are many other ways in which legal cases can be brought against Israel: inside Israel, in Europe and in the US.

Israeli victims of Palestinian attacks have filed cases against the PA in American courts. Palestinian American victims of Israeli crimes must do the same in American courts and beyond. The Gaza war provides ample evidence for tens of thousands of Palestinian victims to seek accountability and compensation.

While the vast majority of victims lack access to legal advice and the financial means to seek justice in Western courts, there are cases where civic coalitions can provide both. In the aftermath of the horrific killing of the young Palestinian girl Hind Rajab, along with her family, in Gaza by Israel, a group of European activists formed the Hind Rajab Foundation in Brussels in 2024.

The foundation is a nonprofit legal initiative that focuses on documenting and litigating alleged Israeli war crimes and broader violations in Palestine, particularly Gaza. It is described as the legal arm of the March 30 Movement, a transnational activist network focused on confronting what it calls Israeli apartheid and genocide. It is devoted to “breaking the cycle of Israeli impunity” by researching, documenting and building legal cases on war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide against Palestinians.

The Hind Rajab Foundation specializes in “offensive litigation” — filing complaints under universal jurisdiction laws and before international bodies. It has submitted dossiers on hundreds of named Israeli soldiers and officials in multiple jurisdictions (including the International Criminal Court and courts in Europe, Latin America and Asia).

The Gaza war provides ample evidence for tens of thousands of Palestinian victims to seek accountability

Osama Al-Sharif

While there is no public record yet of an Israeli soldier or official being arrested or indicted solely because of a complaint by the foundation, many complaints have been formally registered and forwarded to prosecutors or investigative judges, meaning the cases have cleared the first hurdle of admissibility and registration, rather than being summarily rejected.

What is encouraging is that several small but growing similar initiatives are forming, especially in Europe. These include Global 195, a worldwide legal coalition launched in March 2025 by the UK-based International Centre of Justice for Palestinians. The European Legal Support Center, Law for Palestine and the Palestine Institute for Public Diplomacy have jointly filed criminal complaints (for example, in Germany), accusing Western officials of aiding and abetting genocide in Gaza, using similar lawfare and universal jurisdiction strategies.

A number of Palestinian and solidarity organizations (such as Al-Haq, International Centre of Justice for Palestinians branches and regional “justice for Gaza” platforms) now run specialized “accountability units” focused on building war crimes cases and complicity files for domestic courts and international bodies, often coordinating with or paralleling the Hind Rajab Foundation’s approach.

But the pace must be picked up, with governments and international media bodies moving to pressure Israel to allow foreign journalists into Gaza, as well as human rights and war crimes experts. Academics must also work together to bring cases against Israel’s destruction of all of Gaza’s universities, as well as the cold-blooded murder of professors, doctors, medics and others.

Israeli crimes in Gaza have not stopped. Israel continues to shell shelter centers while weaponizing the delivery of aid and medicines to this day. Each incident provides legal grounds for investigation and indictment under various laws and conventions.

In a just world, Israel would be facing an international tribunal for its criminal behavior in Gaza, specifically, and elsewhere in the Occupied Territories. That may come true one day. But meanwhile, the rights of tens of thousands of Palestinian victims can still be presented to various courts. Thanks to many organizations, there is substantial documentation of Israeli crimes and those who stood behind them. The message must be clear: the time for Israeli impunity has elapsed and, sooner or later, it will be held accountable.

The question now is not whether accountability will come, but if the international community has the courage to ensure it does — case by case, court by court, until justice is no longer optional.

• Osama Al-Sharif is a journalist and political commentator based in Amman. X: @plato010