The suspects, some of whom hold dual British-Israeli citizenship, all face allegations of crimes that amount to “a war crime or crime against humanity.”
Ten British citizens who served in the Israeli military are facing a complaint of war crimes committed in Gaza, set to be submitted by a group of lawyers to Scotland Yard’s war crimes unit, The Guardian reported.
According to The Guardian, a 240-page dossier will be handed over “alleging targeted killing of civilians and aid workers, including by sniper fire, and indiscriminate attacks on civilian areas, including hospitals.”
The report also includes allegations “of coordinated attacks on protected sites including historic monuments and religious sites, and forced transfer and displacement of civilians.”
Legal Obligation
“British nationals are under a legal obligation not to collude with crimes committed in Palestine. No one is above the law,” Michael Mansfield KC, who is part of the team of UK lawyers and researchers involved in the submission, reportedly said.
Mansfield stressed that if a British national was committing an offence, “we ought to be doing something about it.”
Michael Mansfield KC is one of a group of lawyers who will on Monday hand in a 240-page dossier to Scotland Yard’s war crimes unit alleging targeted killing of civilians and aid workers, including by sniper fire, and indiscriminate attacks on civilian areas, including hospitals. pic.twitter.com/wno4b1dO6E
— Samira Mohyeddin سمیرا (@SMohyeddin) April 7, 2025
He added, “Even if we can’t stop the government of foreign countries behaving badly, we can at least stop our nationals from behaving badly.
For legal reasons, the Guardian report noted, “neither the names of suspects, who include officer-level individuals, nor the full report are being made public.”
Evidence from Witnesses
The report has been submitted on behalf of the Gaza-based Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR) and the British-based Public Interest Law Centre (PILC), and covers alleged offences committed in the besieged enclave from October 2023 to May 2024.
According to the dossier, which took six months to compile, the suspects, some of whom hold dual British-Israeli citizenship, all face allegations of crimes that amount to “a war crime or crime against humanity.”
In March 2025, the Israeli Occupying Forces (IOF), and Israeli settlers continued their crimes and violations of human rights and international humanitarian law against Palestinians and their properties in the West Bank, including occupied Jerusalem. These crimes have included… pic.twitter.com/Z2fzSu1k90
— Palestinian Centre for Human Rights – PCHR (@pchrgaza) April 7, 2025
It documents one witness at a medical facility having seen corpses “scattered on the ground, especially in the middle of the hospital courtyard, where many dead bodies were buried in a mass grave,” The Guardian reported.
The witness added that a bulldozer “ran over a dead body in a horrific and heart-wrenching scene desecrating the dead”, which also demolished part of the hospital.
‘Not in Our Name’
The Guardian noted that the report points out that Britain “has a responsibility under international treaties to investigate and prosecute those who have committed ‘core international crimes.’”
Section 51 of the International Criminal Court Act 2001, the report added, states that it “is an offence against the law of England and Wales for a person to commit genocide, a crime against humanity, or a war crime”, even if it takes place in another country.
British nationals have served in some of Israel’s “craziest” units in Gaza where they view Palestinians as “rats” and “animals”.
Declassified gathered names and photographs of 15 Britons who have recently fought for Israel. Report by @Hamza_a96
https://t.co/tmhm0RaZqI
— Declassified UK (@declassifiedUK) April 7, 2025
Raji Sourani, the director of the PCHR, reportedly said: “This is illegal, this is inhuman and enough is enough. The government cannot say we didn’t know; we are providing them with all the evidence.”
While the legal director of the PILC, Paul Herron, said, “We’re filing our report to make clear these war crimes are not in our name.”
Global 195 Initiative
Last month, a worldwide legal coalition called Global 195 was launched, dedicated to holding accountable Israeli and dual-national individuals alleged to have committed war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.
The Global 195 initiative, spearheaded by the International Center of Justice for Palestinians (ICJP), “establishes a global network of accountability” which will ensure that domestic and international legal mechanisms are utilized to pursue individuals suspected of war crimes, wherever they may be, according to a press statement.
The scope of Global 195 includes individuals “who have fought in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), as well as figures spanning the entire Israeli military and political chain of command, from senior policymakers to operational personnel, who are directly or indirectly responsible for violations of international law.”
ICJP has secured a coalition of legal practitioners and organizations from more than six countries including Malaysia, Türkiye, Norway, Canada, Bosnia and Herzegovina and the United Kingdom, and will continue to establish legal teams “in all countries across the globe.”
Hind Rajab Foundation
In October last year, a Belgium-based rights group, the Hind Rajab Foundation, filed “an unprecedented and historical complaint” with the International Criminal Court (ICC) against 1,000 Israeli soldiers for war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide in the Gaza Strip.
(The Palestine Chronicle)
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