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Hind Rajab Foundation has been pursuing legal cases against Israeli soldiers across the globe, citing war crimes. An advocacy group has initiated legal action in Argentina and Chile, urging the countries to arrest an Israeli soldier for war crimes in Gaza . The cases filed in Argentina and Chile announced on Thursday cite both national and international legal obligations. They come among a wider effort by the Belgium-based Hind Rajab Foundation to pressure countries across the world to seek more comprehensive justice for abuses committed in the Palestinian enclave. The cases target Israeli soldier Saar Hirshoren for what the Hind Rajab Foundation described as his role in the 749 Combat Engineering Battalion, which chair Dyab Abou Jahjah described as being “systematically involved in the destruction of civilian infrastructure” in Gaza. The foundation has simultaneously filed a complaint against the entire battalion with the International Criminal Court (ICC) for “war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide”. Local prosecutors working with the group filed the criminal complaint in Argentina on December 24 and Chile the next day, calling for Hirshoren’s arrest. The foundation said Hirshoren was initially in Argentina when the first case was filed, before leaving for Chile. The prosecutors cited “video evidence from Hirshoren’s Instagram account, showing him actively participating in the destruction of civilian infrastructure in Gaza” as well as “his role in the deliberate demolition of neighbourhoods, cultural sites, and essential facilities” in violation of international law. It was not immediately clear if Hirshoren holds dual nationality of any country beyond Israel and his most recent whereabouts remain unknown, Abou Jahjah told Al Jazeera. “I appeal to Argentina and Chile to take their responsibility as democracies, states with the rule of law to arrest Mr Hirshoren,” he said. Push for wider accountability The latest legal actions come after Amnesty International earlier this month concluded that Israel was committing genocide in Gaza. UN rights experts have reached similar determinations on the war, which began following an attack by Hamas on southern Israel on October 7, 2023. Since then, 45,399 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza and 107,940 have been wounded in Israeli operations, which have also destroyed much of Gaza’s infrastructure and brought a deadly humanitarian crisis. The Hamas attack on Israel killed 1,139 people. In November, the ICC issued an arrest warrant for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, citing “the war crime of starvation as a method of warfare; and the crimes against humanity of murder, persecution, and other inhumane acts”. Israel has rejected the warrants and has repeatedly maintained its actions in Gaza are in line with international law. The ICC last month also issued an arrest warrant for Hamas military commander Mohammed Deif for crimes against humanity and war crimes committed during the October 7 attack on Israel. Israel has said Deif was killed in a July strike. But the Hind Rajab Foundation, named after the 6-year-old killed in Israeli shelling as her family fled Gaza City earlier this year, and other advocacy groups have said accountability should extend beyond the Israeli leadership. The foundation has launched legal actions against Israeli soldiers who are either citizens of – or temporary visitors to – Ecuador, the Netherlands, France, and Cyprus, among others. The group has regularly focused on Israeli soldiers who have posted abuses on social media. For example, Hirshoren posted a video of himself remotely detonating seven buildings near the Mosab bin Omair mosque in north Nuseirat in October, according to an analysis of posts by Drop Site News. Advocates argue that countries that are parties to international rights treaties – including the ICC’s founding document, the Rome Statute, as well as the Geneva Convention – have a responsibility to enforce international law. In October, the group filed a complaint to the ICC naming 1,000 Israeli soldiers it accused of abuses, including 12 dual nationals from France, 12 from the United States, four from Canada, three from the United Kingdom, and two from The Netherlands. Abou Jahjah said with the ICC taking long-delayed actions, his group hopes to correct a “deficiency” at the nation-state level. It may be a long shot. None of the countries where the group has taken action have sought recourse against the identified soldiers. Neither Chile nor Argentina have responded to the latest appeal. Still, Abou Jahjah said he hopes the message will resonate. “You cannot let criminals come and vacation in your country as if there’s nothing happening,” Abou Jahjah said. “You cannot just default your responsibilities to the conventions that you have signed,” he added, “and to the principles of justice that all of these states have embodied in their constitutions.”AP News Summary at 5:05 p.m. ESTRFK Jr's candidacy as top US health official a 'poke in the eye of science' - critics
During the presidential campaign, Donald Trump pitched an idea to quickly reduce the number of tents on the nation’s streets: Offer up other places for people to camp. He’d start with a big plot of land. Then his team would hire social workers, psychiatrists and other medical staff which together could “create tent cities where the homeless can be relocated,” he said last year in a video . That idea might sound familiar. San Diego already has two designated camping areas by Balboa Park where hundreds spend each night in red tents , and the project appears to offer at least one area of agreement between local leaders and the president-elect. Yet when it comes to other fronts in the fight to end homelessness — including a longstanding housing-first policy, funding for migrants, encampment crackdowns and a local proposal to create what would likely be the nation’s largest shelter — the debates may be more contentious, especially considering the budget deficits facing both California and the city of San Diego. “Am I concerned about Trump coming in and cutting budgets? Sure,” said Jennifer Nations, managing director of the Homelessness Hub research lab at UC San Diego. “Would it have happened anyway? Maybe.” Housing First Trump’s first administration opposed the federal government’s longstanding “Housing First” policy that prioritizes getting people safe places to live before other problems are addressed. One report from his U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness called it a failed “one-size-fits-all approach,” yet that declaration didn’t come until October 2020, shortly before Trump lost the election to Joe Biden. Trump’s more recent homelessness speeches suggest he may revisit a policy overhaul. For “those who are severely mentally ill and deeply disturbed, we will bring them back to mental institutions,” he said. A growing body of research has found that a lack of affordable housing is the primary driver of homelessness and there is ample evidence that Housing First can work. This is partially why San Diego shelters are generally “low barrier,” meaning sobriety isn’t required, and leaders in Sacramento don’t appear eager to toss California’s own Housing First model. Nonetheless, Trump could potentially reduce how much money is available for certain housing projects. One bright side? There might instead be more funding for shelters and treatment programs, said Tamera Kohler, CEO of the Regional Task Force on Homelessness. “That does meet a need,” she added. Veterans and migrants In another video from last year, Trump pledged to redirect money spent on migrants toward citizens who’ve served in the military. “I will make it a personal mission to totally eradicate veterans’ homelessness in America by the end of next term,” he said. That could mean more funds for housing vouchers, a form of rental assistance credited with reducing veteran homelessness nationwide. However, San Diego County officials have long said there’s not enough federal aid to help those crossing the border get to their final destinations, which are often in other states, and a drop in support might lead to more immigrants ending up on local streets . Crackdown Trump’s campaign video also promised a crackdown on encampments. “There is nothing compassionate about letting these individuals live in filth and squalor rather than getting them the help that they need,” he said. Much of the state appears to agree. Several cities, including San Diego, have already approved camping bans that boost penalties for sleeping outside, while California voters just passed Proposition 36 to toughen sentences for drug possession. County officials are additionally in the process of implementing Senate Bill 43 to detain more people incapacitated by substance abuse. Yet there are nowhere near enough beds at traditional shelters or rehabilitation facilities for everyone asking for help, much less those taken against their will, nor is it clear if a president would have much influence over local law enforcement. San Diego officials directed questions about the federal government’s jurisdiction concerning area encampments to the city attorney’s office, where a spokesperson declined comment. Sunbreak Ranch Trump’s comments about “tent cities” were seized upon by proponents of a different homelessness proposal called Sunbreak Ranch, which calls for the creation of a massive campus somewhere in the county that could theoretically serve thousands. “San Diego is uniquely well-positioned to be the pilot program location,” businessman George Mullen wrote in an email. “And once Sunbreak is proven, it can be rapidly replicated up California and across America.” The basic idea has been endorsed by a number of local and national leaders , including Ben Carson, Trump’s former secretary of housing and urban development. Critics argue it’s an pipe dream. Mullen previously pushed to use part of Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, just off Interstate 15, but the site’s commanding officer has said the area likely has too many buried explosives . Nonetheless, Trump’s reelection may raise the odds that federal land is made available for homelessness services. A spokesperson for Mayor Todd Gloria said they hoped for a good working relationship with the incoming administration. “We are always open to any realistic solution that helps people,” Rachel Laing wrote in an email. “Certainly, we would welcome more behavioral health resources for those suffering from mental health and substance use disorders.” Trump does not yet appear to have nominated candidates to lead the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development or the interagency homelessness council, both of which could have significant influence over the crisis. ©2024 The San Diego Union-Tribune. Visit sandiegouniontribune.com . Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.Prince and Princess of Wales 'so sorry' after death of 'brave and humble' teenage photographer
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