The Dutch Supreme Court upheld the rulings of lower court judges and ruled that Benny Gantz, former Chief of Airstaff Amir Eshel, are immune from prosecution due to their immunity.
Gantz and Eshel are both former Israeli officials who have served as military veterans turned politicians. They receive immunity because of their role in executing the government’s policy. They are therefore immune from legal action, no matter how serious or insignificant the allegations. filed the case claiming that he lost his mother, 3 brothers, a brother-in-law, and a niece as a result an airstrike which was part of Israel’s campaign against the Hamas during the Gaza War in 2014. Ziada sued Gantz in order to recover damages that were not disclosed. This was done under Dutch universal jurisdiction rules, which allow legal action against grave crimes committed outside the Netherlands. The men’s actions were deemed war crimes by his legal team. Since further appeals against the court’s ruling are not feasible, Ziada is contemplating a potential recourse to the after this unfavorable outcome.
Meanwhile, Israel’s Ministry of Justice conveyed to the Dutch court that an internal Israeli military investigation had established the death of four Palestinians due to the airstrike. Conversely, Hamas officials maintained that two of their members were present in the building.Israel contends that it launched the military campaign in 2014 to
Ismail Ziadahalt rocket attacks on its citizens and to dismantle tunnels used for weapons smuggling and militant infiltration. Operation “Protective Edge”, as it is known in Israel, saw 2,251 Palestinians – most of them civilians – and 74 Israelis – mostly soldiers – die in the conflict.