An earlier version of this article was published by Global Research. The substack text was revised and expanded on May 25-26, 2024

Introduction

There is a complex history behind Israel’s October 2023 plan to “Wipe Gaza off the Map”. It’s “an ongoing genocide”, an absolute slaughter, coupled with atrocities.

It’s a criminal undertaking based on Israel’s doctrine of “Justified Vengeance” which was first formulated in 2001.

The “Justified Vengeance” doctrine propounds in no uncertain terms that Palestine (despite its limited military capabilities) is “the Aggressor” and that “Israel has the right to defend itself” which since October 7, 2023 consists in the conduct of a carefully planned genocide against the People of Palestine. 

Paul Larudee begs the question: 

“Is there a point at which the genocide in Gaza becomes egregious enough to provoke other countries to directly intervene in the Gaza Strip to prevent further genocide? 

Can Israel exterminate the entire population without anyone stopping them?”

The answer to that question is provided by the International Criminal Court (ICC) in the form of a despicable set of accusations directed against Palestinians who are the victims of  “An Act of Genocide” instigated by Israel with the unbending support of most Western governments. 

False Flag. “Palestine Attacks Israel” 

Below is the statement of the ICC Prosecutor Karim A.A. Khan (KC) which accuses Hamas of committing crimes against humanity as well as war crimes, while carefully ignoring the evidence pertaining to Israel’s “false flag” operation which has resulted quite “deliberately” —on the behalf of the Netanyahu government— in deaths of innocent Israeli civilians.

These are the Palestinian children who are “waging attacks against Israel”

Military operations are invariably planned well in advance.  The October 7, 2023 “Operation Al-Aqsa Storm” was not a “surprise attack”.  It was a False Flag operation carried out by a “faction” (intelligence assets) within Hamas, in close liaison with Mossad and U.S. intelligence. 

According to Dr. Philip Giraldi, a renowned analyst and former CIA official:

As a former intelligence officer, I find it impossible to believe that Israel did not have multiple informants inside Gaza as well as electronic listening devices all along the border wall which would have picked up movements of groups and vehicles.

In other words, the whole thing might be a tissue of lies as is often the case. (October 8, 2023)

According to  Efrat Fenigson, former IDF intelligence official (published on October 7, 2023)

There’s no way Israel did not know of what’s coming.

How come border crossings were wide open?

Something is VERY WRONG HERE, something is very strange, this chain of events is very unusual and not typical for the Israeli defense system.

To me this surprise attack seems like a planned operation. On all fronts. 

The Features of the Gaza Fence largely confirm the above statements by Giraldi and Fenigson:

According to Israel’s defence ministry “the barrier includes hundreds of cameras, radars and other sensors, it spans 65km.

The ministry said the project’s “smart fence” is more than six metres high and its maritime barrier includes means to detect infiltration by sea and a remote-controlled weapons system.

See also the following article:

Section Commander of the Gaza Fence: “The obstacle is built so that even a fox cannot pass it”. They Let It Happen. The Hamas Attack Was Allowed to Close the Book on Palestine.

By. Dr. Paul Craig Roberts, General Herzl Halevi, and Prof Michel Chossudovsky, October 9, 2023

MICHEL CHOSSUDOVSKY - MIDDLE EAST WAR: A FALSE FLAG LEADING TO MORE FALSE FLAGS?

It should be understood that the implementation of the False Flag was carefully coordinated with Israel’s “Act of Genocide” directed against the People of Palestine.

On that same day of October 7, 2023 Netanyahu launched a military operation against the Gaza Strip entitled “State of Readiness For War”.  

Had  “Operation Al-Aqsa Storm” been a “surprise attack” as parroted by the media, Netanyahu’s “State of Readiness For War” could not have been carried out (at short notice) on that same day, namely October 7, 2023. 

There is A Long History of Israeli False Flags

The late  Prof Tanya Reinhart confirmed the formulation in 1997 of a False Flag Agenda entitled “The Green Light to Terror” which consisted in promoting (engineering) suicide attacks against Israeli civilians, citing “the Bloodshed as a Justification” to wage war on Palestine: 

“…This is the “green light to terror” theme which the Military Intelligence (Ama”n) has been promoting since 1997, when its anti-Oslo line was consolidated. This theme was since repeated again and again by military circles, and eventually became the mantra of Israeli propaganda… (See Chossudovsky, October 23, 2023)

There is continuity: Israel’s Military Intelligence remains in charge of implementing false flag operations coupled with “Acts of Genocide” directed against Palestine.

For details and analysis on False Flags, See:

Is the Gaza-Israel Fighting “A False Flag”? They Let It Happen? Their Objective Is “to Wipe Gaza Off the Map”?

By Philip Giraldi and Prof Michel Chossudovsky, May 24, 2024

“Israel is the Victim of Palestinian Aggression”. The International Criminal Court (ICC) Accuses Palestine

In a bitter irony, the ICC Prosecutor’s accusations against Hamas (representing the People of Gaza) which include alleged acts of “Extermination”, “Murder” and “Torture” suggest that the State of Israel rather than Palestine is the victim of Genocide. 

According to the ICC Statement, Palestine’s alleged “Act of Aggression” against Israel consists in:

• Extermination as a crime against humanity, contrary to article 7(1)(b) of the Rome Statute;

• Murder as a crime against humanity, contrary to article 7(1)(a), and as a war crime, contrary to article 8(2)(c)(i);

• Taking hostages as a war crime, contrary to article 8(2)(c)(iii);

• Rape and other acts of sexual violence as crimes against humanity, contrary to article 7(1)(g), and also as war crimes pursuant to article 8(2)(e)(vi) in the context of captivity;

• Torture as a crime against humanity, contrary to article 7(1)(f), and also as a war crime, contrary to article 8(2)(c)(i), in the context of captivity;

• Other inhumane acts as a crime against humanity, contrary to article 7(l)(k), in the context of captivity;

• Cruel treatment as a war crime contrary to article 8(2)(c)(i), in the context of captivity; and

• Outrages upon personal dignity as a war crime, contrary to article 8(2)(c)(ii), in the context of captivity.

What  these insidious legal statements imply is that the ICC has de facto given “its stamp of approval” to Israel’s “Justified Vengeance” against the People of Palestine, which is currently ongoing.

Inasmuch as the issue of the False Flag (despite extensive evidence) has been casually dismissed by the ICC, as well as by Western governments and the media, the accusations against Hamas are meaningless.

The ICC has also denied “Palestine’s Right to Resist Israeli Occupation” under the Fourth Protocol of the Geneva Convention.

International law is unambiguous in its endorsement of “armed struggle” for peoples who seek self-determination under “colonial and foreign domination.”

United Nations resolution 37/43, dated 3 December 1982, “reaffirms the legitimacy of the struggle of peoples for independence, territorial integrity, national unity and liberation from colonial and foreign domination and foreign occupation by all available means, including armed struggle.” Palestine Chronicle (emphasis added)

The Endgame is the Exclusion of Palestinians from their Homeland. 

The Lie has become the Truth

Amply documented Israel is involved in acts of “Extermination” against Palestinians.

Yet it is Israel which is described by the ICC as the “Victim of Palestinian Aggression.” 

Genocide and False Flags

While the ICC fails to acknowledge the conduct of a “False Flag”, numerous documents, witnesses and statements, confirm Israel’s False Flag initiative.

In a bitter irony, the False Flag Attack Strategy had been acknowledged by Netanyahu in consultation with the Likud Party. It comes from the Horse’s Mouth:

“Anyone who wants to thwart the establishment of a Palestinian state has to support bolstering Hamas and transferring money to Hamas,” he [Netanyahu]told a meeting of his Likud party’s Knesset members in March 2019. “This is part of our strategy – to isolate the Palestinians in Gaza from the Palestinians in the West Bank.” (Haaretz, October 9, 2023, emphasis added)

Moreover, “Transferring Money by the Netanyahu government to Hamas intelligence assets” was confirmed in a Times of Israel October 8, 2023 Report: 

“Hamas was treated as a partner to the detriment of the Palestinian Authority to prevent Abbas from moving towards creating a Palestinian State.

Hamas was promoted from a terrorist group to an organization with which Israel conducted negotiations through Egypt, and which was allowed to receive suitcases containing millions of dollars from Qatar through the Gaza crossings.” (emphasis added)

The False Flag operation was used to justify the conduct of a carefully planned “Genocide”.

The Evidence

There are numerous government documents that describe in detail the planning and conduct of the genocide.

What we have on record (which is the object of our analysis) is:

 An official  memorandum –released and declassified (made public) on October 13, 2023– by Israel’s Ministry of Intelligence, which confirms Israel’s planning of a Genocide against the People of Palestine.

This intelligence memorandum was prepared well in advance of October 7, 2023.

It was available to the ICC Team.

The thrust of the document describes what is currently unfolding, namely the Exclusion of Palestinians from Their Homeland.

This is Israel’s Plan (Before our Very Eyes)

“The forcible and permanent transfer of the Gaza Strip’s 2.2 million Palestinian residents to Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula”.

It’s a longstanding and carefully prepared initiative by Israel’s Ministry of Intelligence, which was declassified on October 13, 2023, namely one week after the commencement of the invasion of the Gaza Strip.

Concurrently, Israel’s Ministry of Intelligence was responsible for the implementation of the False Flag.

---

Option. C. The Evacuation of the Civilian Population from Gaza to the Sinai

click here or below to access complete document (10 pages)

 

The Option C Blueprint: A Criminal Endeavour

The Option C document is the Blueprint of Israel’s War against Palestine, the underlying intent of which is to:

Destroy Palestine as a Nation State and Exclude Palestinians from their Homeland.

The Overthrow of Hamas is contemplated, which if carried out would no doubt result in the implementation of the three ICC Hamas Arrest Warrants.

Option C. calls for:

“The Evacuation of the civilian population from Gaza to Sinai”

See details below (emphasis added)

Israel is to act to evacuate the civilian population to Sinai. In the first stage, tent cities will be established in the area of Sinai.

The next stage includes the establishment of a humanitarian zone to assist the civilian population of Gaza and the construction of cities in a resettled area in northern Sinai.

A sterile zone of several kilometers should be created within Egypt, and the return of the population to activities/residences near the border with Israel should not be allowed.

In addition, a security perimeter should be established in our [Israel’s] territory near the border with Egypt. (Option C)

There are various military and operational dimensions which are currently being implemented. The killings and the famine are ongoing.

With regard to propaganda, lobbying and public relations, the focus is on:

“harnessing the support of the United States and additional pro-Israeli countries for the endeavor”.

The role of Egypt in Option C is of course crucial:

Egypt has an obligation under international law to allow the passage of the  population.

Israel must act to promote a broad diplomatic initiative aimed at countries that will support assisting the displaced population and agree to absorb them as refugees.

Solidarity with Palestine

It is important as part of the Palestine solidarity movement that Option C be fully understood. It is a criminal endeavor. It is part of Israel’s “Act of Genocide”.

The State of Israel is in blatant violation of the Genocide Convention.

For further details and analysis: click here to access complete document (10 pages).

See also:  “Wiping Gaza Off the Map”: Israel’s “Secret” Intelligence Memorandum “Option C” by Michel Chossudovsky

The ICC Prosecutor is a “Double Speak”. 

We are dealing with an absurd “upside down rhetoric” “Mundus inversus” on the part of the ICC Prosecutor. 

While the ICC Prosecutor accuses Palestine, he rightfully acknowledges the crimes committed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant, specifically with regard to the starvation of civilians as a method of warfare. 

This issue is fundamental. Starvation in the Gaza Strip is ongoing. It’s a crime against humanity. It’s Genocide.

For nearly 8 months, Israel still chokes off nearly all food and other vital supplies to Gaza. 

Gaza needs 500 trucks of supply every day, and near-nothing is coming through.

The US pier supplies 25-50 trucks per day, and everything else is closed.

With irregular intervals, reports have come the past months, but never about more than some 100 or 150 trucks on a few days. 

Reports about starvation are made public, and this is obviously getting worse. (Karsten Riise, communication to the author)

ICC Prosecutor Karim A. A. Khan’s presentation is cautious. He essentially contends that “crimes have been committed by both sides” while intimating that “The Fourth Military Power” on the Planet, “Has a Right to Defend Itself” (in words of Joe Biden on October 7).

 

The False Flag which constitutes a crime against humanity, is not addressed by the ICC, nor is the issue of the Genocide against the People of Palestine.

Netanyahu and Gallant are “The Fall Guys”

ICC prosecutor Karim Khan KC issued a statement [on May 20] proposing that arrest warrants are issued for Mr Netanyahu, Israel’s defence minister Yoav Gallant, Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, Mohammed al-Masri, Hamas’s military chief, and Ismail Haniyeh, Hamas’s political leader. (Independent)

The allegations directed against Netanyahu and Yoav Gallant which are fully corroborated, coupled with arrest warrants, are intent to:

—reach out and mislead the anti-Zionist peace movement,

—provide a sense of (fake) “legitimacy” to the ICC’s far-reaching accusations against Palestine (“extermination and murder”).

—provide a “human face” to Karim Khan KC

Nowhere in the ICC Prosecutor’s report is the issue of “Israel’s genocide directed against the People of Palestine” mentioned.

In this regard, the Arrest Warrants directed by the ICC against the three Hamas leaders serve to:

1. “Side Track” the Strategic Role of the “False Flag Operation“

2. Refute the very existence of a Genocide,

3. Endorse Israel’s Act of Self Defense against Palestine.

In regards to the arrest warrants directed against Netanyahu and Gallant, it is highly unlikely that they will be carried out.

(Netanyahu already has a criminal record. In November 2019, he was officially “indicted for breach of trust, accepting bribes, and fraud”)

Of relevance, the CIA has been operating in the background in collaboration with Israeli intelligence.

There are unspoken strategic objectives.

In mid-May 2024, CIA Director Bill Burns was in Cairo for negotiations behind closed doors with both Israeli and Hamas officials, regarding a possible ceasefire.

The three arrest warrants directed against the leaders of Hamas are intended to confirm that the alleged October 7, 2023 Act of “Aggression” against Israel was NOT (despite evidence) part of a “False Flag” (i.e. inside intelligence op. carefully coordinated by Israeli and U.S. intelligence). 

The ICC Arrest Warrants directed against Netanyahu and Gallant (which will never be carried out), serve the useful purpose of placing the blame while at the same time deflecting our understanding as to who from a strategic standpoint is behind the conduct of the Genocide directed against the People of Palestine. 

What this does is to distract public opinion. It misleads the peace movement. It creates divisions within the solidarity movement with Palestine. 

Economic Interests

Bear in mind there are powerful economic interests which are supportive of the Genocide. They have their eyes on Gaza’s Multibillion Offshore Maritime Gas Reserves.

Video: “Wiping Gaza Off The Map”: Big Money Agenda. Confiscating Palestine’s Maritime Natural Gas Reserves

By Felicity Arbuthnot and Prof Michel Chossudovsky, April 23, 2024

Anglo-America Controls the ICC and the IJC 

I should mention that the False Flag issue –which constitutes a crime against humanity on the part of Israel and the U.S.– has been casually ignored both by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) (Chief Justice Donahue, former adviser to Hillary Clinton). (January 2024)

And now by the International Criminal Court (ICC). On behalf of His Majesty: Prosecutor, Karim Khan, K.C. (King’s Counsel). 

The U.N based judicial system is composed of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) and the International Criminal Court (ICC), both of which have deliberately ignored the issue of Genocide against Palestine.  

What is at stake is the outright criminalization of the UN judicial system.

The Mandate of the International Criminal Court (ICC)

Click to access the ICC Website

Visibly the stated mandate of “Trying Individuals for Genocide” on the ICC’s top banner does not apply to “individuals” including government officials of the State of Israel.

 

The ICC Prosecutor Karim Khan, KC Makes No Reference to “Genocide” in His Statement

Despite the evidence, the ICC Prosecutor fails to acknowledge that Israel is conducting a Genocide, with the endorsement of Western governments.

Below are the results of my search:

The word “Genocide” is NOT mentioned in his statement with the exception of the title banner.

 

The Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide is not mentioned. 

His statements point to the “Criminalization of the ICC”

What is the Truth, What is the Lie? 

All These Babies are facing Death due to the absence of Fuel and Medicine.

WHY?

The underlying cause of these atrocities is “Genocide” which is upheld by the UN Judicial System. ICJ and ICC.

The Truth is that “Extermination” and “Murder” are being conducted by Israel, specifically targeting children (click here to access a series of videos, requires Facebook)

 

—Michel Chossudovsky, Global Research, May 24, 2024

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ANNEX

 

Statement of ICC Prosecutor Karim A.A. Khan KC:

Applications for arrest warrants in the situation in the State of Palestine

link to the ICC

20 May 2024

Today I am filing applications for warrants of arrest before Pre-Trial Chamber I of the International Criminal Court in the Situation in the State of Palestine.

 

Today I am filing applications for warrants of arrest before Pre-Trial Chamber I of the International Criminal Court in the Situation in the State of Palestine.

IntlCriminalCourt

(link to the ICC)

On the basis of evidence collected and examined by my Office, I have reasonable grounds to believe that Yahya SINWAR (Head of the Islamic Resistance Movement (“Hamas”) in the Gaza Strip), Mohammed Diab Ibrahim AL-MASRI, more commonly known as DEIF (Commander-in-Chief of the military wing of Hamas, known as the Al-Qassam Brigades), and Ismail HANIYEH (Head of Hamas Political Bureau) bear criminal responsibility for the following war crimes and crimes against humanity committed on the territory of Israel and the State of Palestine (in the Gaza strip) from at least 7 October 2023: 

• Extermination as a crime against humanity, contrary to article 7(1)(b) of the Rome Statute;

• Murder as a crime against humanity, contrary to article 7(1)(a), and as a war crime, contrary to article 8(2)(c)(i);

• Taking hostages as a war crime, contrary to article 8(2)(c)(iii);

• Rape and other acts of sexual violence as crimes against humanity, contrary to article 7(1)(g), and also as war crimes pursuant to article 8(2)(e)(vi) in the context of captivity;

• Torture as a crime against humanity, contrary to article 7(1)(f), and also as a war crime, contrary to article 8(2)(c)(i), in the context of captivity;

• Other inhumane acts as a crime against humanity, contrary to article 7(l)(k), in the context of captivity;

• Cruel treatment as a war crime contrary to article 8(2)(c)(i), in the context of captivity; and

• Outrages upon personal dignity as a war crime, contrary to article 8(2)(c)(ii), in the context of captivity.

My Office submits that the war crimes alleged in these applications were committed in the context of an international armed conflict between Israel and Palestine, and a non-international armed conflict between Israel and Hamas running in parallel. We submit that the crimes against humanity charged were part of a widespread and systematic attack against the civilian population of Israel by Hamas and other armed groups pursuant to organisational policies. Some of these crimes, in our assessment, continue to this day.

My Office submits there are reasonable grounds to believe that SINWAR, DEIF and HANIYEH are criminally responsible for the killing of hundreds of Israeli civilians in attacks perpetrated by Hamas (in particular its military wing, the al-Qassam Brigades) and other armed groups on 7 October 2023 and the taking of at least 245 hostages. As part of our investigations, my Office has interviewed victims and survivors, including former hostages and eyewitnesses from six major attack locations: Kfar Aza; Holit; the location of the Supernova Music Festival; Be’eri; Nir Oz; and Nahal Oz. The investigation also relies on evidence such as CCTV footage, authenticated audio, photo and video material, statements by Hamas members including the alleged perpetrators named above, and expert evidence.

It is the view of my Office that these individuals planned and instigated the commission of crimes on 7 October 2023, and have through their own actions, including personal visits to hostages shortly after their kidnapping, acknowledged their responsibility for those crimes. We submit that these crimes could not have been committed without their actions. They are charged both as co-perpetrators and as superiors pursuant to Articles 25 and 28 of the Rome Statute.

During my own visit to Kibbutz Be’eri and Kibbutz Kfar Aza, as well as to the site of Supernova Music Festival in Re’im, I saw the devastating scenes of these attacks and the profound impact of the unconscionable crimes charged in the applications filed today. Speaking with survivors, I heard how the love within a family, the deepest bonds between a parent and a child, were contorted to inflict unfathomable pain through calculated cruelty and extreme callousness. These acts demand accountability.

My Office also submits there are reasonable grounds to believe that hostages taken from Israel have been kept in inhumane conditions, and that some have been subject to sexual violence, including rape, while being held in captivity. We have reached that conclusion based on medical records, contemporaneous video and documentary evidence, and interviews with victims and survivors. My Office also continues to investigate reports of sexual violence committed on 7 October.

I wish to express my gratitude to the survivors, and the families of victims of the 7 October attacks, for their courage in coming forward to provide their accounts to my Office. We remain focused on further deepening our investigations of all crimes committed as part of these attacks and will continue to work with all partners to ensure that justice is delivered.

I again reiterate my call for the immediate release of all hostages taken from Israel and for their safe return to their families. This is a fundamental requirement of international humanitarian law.

Benjamin Netanyahu, Yoav Gallant

On the basis of evidence collected and examined by my Office, I have reasonable grounds to believe that Benjamin NETANYAHU, the Prime Minister of Israel, and Yoav GALLANT, the Minister of Defence of Israel, bear criminal responsibility for  the following war crimes and crimes against humanity committed on the territory of the State of Palestine (in the Gaza strip) from at least 8 October 2023:

• Starvation of civilians as a method of warfare as a war crime contrary to article 8(2)(b)(xxv) of the Statute;

• Wilfully causing great suffering, or serious injury to body or health contrary to article 8(2)(a)(iii), or cruel treatment as a war crime contrary to article 8(2)(c)(i);

• Wilful killing contrary to article 8(2)(a)(i), or Murder as a war crime contrary to article 8(2)(c)(i);

• Intentionally directing attacks against a civilian population as a war crime contrary to articles 8(2)(b)(i), or 8(2)(e)(i);

• Extermination and/or murder contrary to articles 7(1)(b) and 7(1)(a), including in the context of deaths caused by starvation, as a crime against humanity;

• Persecution as a crime against humanity contrary to article 7(1)(h);

• Other inhumane acts as crimes against humanity contrary to article 7(1)(k).

My Office submits that the war crimes alleged in these applications were committed in the context of an international armed conflict between Israel and Palestine, and a non-international armed conflict between Israel and Hamas (together with other Palestinian Armed Groups) running in parallel.

We submit that the crimes against humanity charged were committed as part of a widespread and systematic attack against the Palestinian civilian population pursuant to State policy. These crimes, in our assessment, continue to this day.

Click here to read the full text.