Israel’s war against humanity

Professor Shlaim explains his participation in the Gaza Tribunal as a crucial civil society initiative, arguing that the international community, and particularly Western powers like Britain and America, have profoundly failed the Palestinian people. He asserts that these nations are not merely complicit but are "active partners" in Israel's genocide and war crimes. Consequently, he has lost faith in the foreign policies of official governments and believes that hope for justice must instead come from civil society movements like the Tribunal, which work to counter misinformation, raise public awareness, and pressure governments to change their stances.

He provides a scathing assessment of the current Israeli government, labeling it the most "far-right, extremist, overtly racist, and Jewish-supremacist" in the country's history. Shlaim highlights the government's policy guidelines, which he says claim an exclusive Jewish right to self-determination in the entire land, including the West Bank, thereby completely denying national rights to Palestinians. This, he argues, makes the government exceptionally extreme, even within the context of Israel's own history.

Professor Shlaim reframes the war on Gaza, stating it is inaccurately portrayed as a war against Hamas. He contends that it is not a war between Israel and the Palestinian people or the Arab world. In his final, stark conclusion, he characterizes the situation as a "war between Israel against humanity."