The Legal Agenda is presenting a series of reports of war crimes committed by Israel in the context of its aggression against Lebanon. These reports are an attempt to document these crimes and pave the way for an independent and transparent investigation into them. They are based on preliminary information available at the time of their publication, and we hope that they can contribute to the necessary national efforts to document war crimes.

This alert was updated on 22 October 2024.

Facts

Attacks Throughout Lebanon, 20 October 2024

• At 9 PM on 20 October 2024, the Israeli occupation army announced its intent to target the infrastructure operated by the al-Qard al-Hasan Association throughout Lebanon and issued a general warning to all of Lebanon’s population to stay away from this infrastructure.
• During the night, the Israeli army issued 24 evacuation orders for several buildings in Dahieh (Beirut’s southern suburb), Beqaa, and Southern Lebanon.
• Throughout the night, the Israeli army launched more than 19 strikes on many civilian buildings in various parts of Lebanon.
• The Israeli warning sparked panic among civilians living near al-Qard al-Hasan branches, thereby causing further displacements throughout Lebanon.

No Legitimate Military Target

• Israel did not state any legitimate military target for these attacks. While the occupation army’s spokesperson claimed that the al-Qard al-Hasan Association finances Hezbollah’s military activity and receives funds from Iran, he did not establish any direct military role played by this institution.
• In 2019, Israel’s Meir Amit Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center, which is known for its connections to the Israeli intelligence agencies and army, published a research paper on the al-Qard al-Hasan Association explaining the social role it performs by “granting loans and operating charitable community funds in accordance with Islamic religious law”. The paper also mentions the institution’s main sources of funding, which include “commissions paid by the borrowers”, “membership fees”, “subscription fees”, and “donations”. It concludes that the institution’s role is to help Hezbollah engage in “intensive social and economic activity within Shiite society in order to turn it into a ‘resistance society,’ i.e., a society that supports Hezbollah and the campaign it is waging against Israel”. This research paper suggests that the institution is part of Hezbollah’s social, financial, and political activity and makes no clear contribution to any of Hezbollah’s military actions.
• On 21 October 2024, a senior Israeli intelligence official told CNN that the “main objective” of Israel’s strikes on the al-Qard al-Hasan Association is to “affect the trust between Hezbollah and a lot of the Shia community”.
• On 21 October 2024, Israel’s minister of defense signed an order declaring the al-Qard al-Hasan Association a terrorist organization.

Context

These attacks are part of Israel’s strategy of destroying social infrastructure linked to Hezbollah rather than just military targets. The attacks have frequently extended to civilian targets protected under the laws of war, such as relief and medical teams.

The Laws of War

• Civilian objects may not be attacked, and the definition of military objectives is limited to objects that make an effective contribution to military action and whose destruction offers a definite military advantage (Article 52 of Additional Protocol I to the Geneva Conventions).
• Financial objects affiliated with a party to the conflict do not lose their civilian immunity or constitute a legitimate target of hostilities.
• The United Nations Humans Rights Office affirmed that “under international humanitarian law, objects that contribute economically or financially to the war effort of a party to a conflict may not be lawfully made the target of attack on that basis alone as they do not fulfil the definition of a military objective”.
• The political advantage represented by increasing social pressure or decoupling society from the armed party cannot be considered a military advantage.
• Acts of violence the primary purpose of which is to spread terror among the civilian population are prohibited (Paragraph 2 of Article 51 of Additional Protocol I to the Geneva Conventions).
• Evacuation orders do not absolve a party of responsibility for committing war crimes targeting nonmilitary objectives. To the contrary, such orders can substantiate war crimes.

Previous Reports of Israeli War Crimes in Lebanon

• War Crime Alert No. 1: The Targeting of an Islamic Health Organization Center and Its Staff, Bachoura, Beirut, 2 October 2024
• War Crime Alert No. 2: The Targeting of Salah Ghandour Hospital, Bint Jbeil, Nabatieh, 4 October 2024
• War Crime Alert No. 3: Rescue Operations Blocked in Mreijeh, Dahieh, Beirut, 4 October 2024 Onwards
• War Crime Alert No. 4: The Targeting of the Bint Jbeil Fire Station and Brigade, Baraachit, 6 October 2024
• War Crime Alert No. 5: The Targeting of UN Peacekeepers, Southern Lebanon, 4-13 October 2024

This article is an edited translation from Arabic.