For more than a decade, Hamas has entrenched itself within the Gaza Strip as a principal terror organization, operating with open support from the Islamic Republic of Iran and functioning as a central node in a broad anti-Israel axis. Since violently seizing Gaza in 2007, Hamas has transformed the territory into an operational and ideological base for terror attacks against Israel, employing tactics that deliberately and systematically contravene established norms of international law.
The most egregious of these violations, repeatedly documented by Israeli security agencies, independent reporting, and international monitoring bodies, involves the exploitation of civilian neighborhoods, public infrastructure, and vulnerable populations as defensive shields and strategic assets. Hamas’ use of schools, medical facilities, mosques, and residential dwellings for military purposes—including weapons storage, tunnel construction, and command centers—has made Gaza’s civilian population the group’s primary line of defense and its principal propaganda resource.
Hamas’ Strategy: Human Shields as Military Doctrine
Rather than seeking to minimize harm to noncombatants, Hamas has elevated the use of human shields to the level of military doctrine. Israeli intelligence assessments, corroborated by on-ground discoveries after major operations, reveal that thousands of weapons caches and underground tunnels are purposefully located under hospitals, UN-run schools, and dense residential blocks. During every major flare-up—including the October 7th massacre and the ongoing Iron Swords War—Hamas has launched rockets from sites adjacent to kindergartens, clinics, and places of worship, knowing the likely civilian casualties such tactics risk in the retaliatory strikes they provoke.
The impact on Gaza’s population is profound: every rocket launched from a residential neighborhood, every command center dug beneath a maternity ward, and every armed ambush staged from a mosque not only endangers local residents but also weaponizes their suffering in a global information war. Hamas’ intention is to generate civilian casualties as a tool to delegitimize Israel and draw international condemnation, despite the clear provisions of the Geneva Conventions outlawing such conduct.
A Complex Operational Landscape for Israeli Forces
In response, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet) have developed advanced operational doctrines and legal oversight mechanisms to cope with the extraordinary complexity of urban warfare in Gaza. Unlike most modern militaries, the IDF publishes real-time warnings and evacuation notices; it adapts targeting plans to evolving intelligence about civilian concentrations and carries out preemptive rescue missions when evidence emerges that Hamas has trapped civilians for tactical gain.
Nevertheless, the operational dilemmas are acute. Each attempt to neutralize a Hamas tunnel or take out a launch cell risks civilian lives—a reality exploited by the terror group at every turn. Despite these challenges, Israel’s leadership has signaled an unwavering commitment to both upholding civilized values and protecting its populace from terror. Senior defense officials routinely emphasize that IDF and Shin Bet missions are subject to rigorous legal review, with stated intent to limit unnecessary harm and conduct after-action investigations wherever concerns of collateral impact arise.
Documentation of War Crimes and International Response
The deliberate placement of military assets in civilian spaces by Hamas constitutes a flagrant breach of international humanitarian law, specifically Articles 28 and 51 of the Fourth Geneva Convention. Numerous international governments and monitoring organizations have condemned these tactics, yet enforcement capacity remains limited.
The use of hospitals as operational command centers was publicly exposed during the 2023 phase of the Iron Swords War. IDF operations in and around Al-Shifa Hospital revealed the presence of extensive tunnel infrastructure in direct violation of the facility’s protected status. Similar evidence has emerged at other educational and medical sites, where combat equipment and captured Israeli hostages have been held in close proximity to sick, elderly, and vulnerable civilians.
Despite ample evidence, Hamas’ leadership denies or obscures the facts, aided by a militant media strategy that leverages restricted access to Gaza and intimidation of local residents. On the rare occasions when internal critics or witnesses speak out, they report reprisals by Hamas’ internal security forces or forced public retractions.
Iranian Influence—Escalation and Regional Implications
Hamas’ capacity to maintain and evolve a strategy of systematic lawbreaking is inextricably connected to the backing it receives from the Islamic Republic of Iran. Iran’s financial, military, and ideological support extends not only to Gaza but to affiliated terror organizations across the region, forming the backbone of the so-called “Axis of Resistance” aimed at destabilizing Israel and the wider Middle East.
Iran’s fingerprints are evident in every aspect of the Hamas war machine—from imported missiles and explosives to the propaganda playbook that seeks to demonize Israel on the world stage. The October 7th massacre, the deadliest terror attack on Jews since the Holocaust, was enabled by years of Iranian planning and supply, and forms part of a broader strategy to encircle Israel with armed proxies in Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, and Yemen.
The aftermath of the October 7th attack has seen Israel engaged on multiple fronts. Hezbollah has fired rockets from southern Lebanon in coordination with Hamas, Iranian-backed militias have attacked Israeli and American positions in Syria and Iraq, and Houthi forces in Yemen have launched missiles at Israeli and regional maritime targets. The scale and ferocity of this regional campaign underscore that the war against Hamas is not merely a local crisis, but a front in an Iranian-orchestrated struggle against Israel’s existence.
The Fate of Hostages: Exposing the Moral Divide
Nowhere is Hamas’ contempt for basic humanity more evident than in its treatment of hostages. The group continues to hold over one hundred Israelis and foreign nationals in undisclosed locations throughout Gaza, many in conditions amounting to torture, medical deprivation, and psychological abuse. Families of hostages report that Hamas uses the captives as bargaining chips, demanding the release of convicted terrorists in exchange for information or the return of civilian abductees—a trading system that international law and moral common sense reject as utterly illegitimate.
While Israeli operations seek to achieve the dual goals of dismantling Hamas and recovering hostages, Hamas has used its captives as human shields, at times placing them within sensitive civilian installations to further deter Israeli military action. These actions reinforce the moral asymmetry at the heart of the conflict: one side abides by international norms and accepts operational constraints, the other weaponizes its own people in search of political advantage and global sympathy.
The Battle for Narrative and International Law
As images from Gaza fuel debate worldwide, Israel faces enormous challenges in making its case amid a torrent of disinformation and hostile activism. The IDF and Israeli government routinely release intelligence materials, footage, and documentation to demonstrate Hamas’ responsibility for civilian suffering—yet narrative warfare is as persistent as kinetic conflict. Hamas and its backers continue to push anti-Israel narratives that omit context and deny the fundamental reality: that the terrorist group’s entrenchment among civilians is the primary driver of casualties in every major escalation.
Many military and international law experts argue that if the world fails to hold Hamas—and by extension, its state sponsors—to account for such systematic abuses, the very fabric of humanitarian law is at risk of collapse.
Israel’s Commitment to Law and Security
Despite the difficulties, Israel sustains its commitment to legal and moral conduct. Every operation is scrutinized by legal advisors and reviewed by independent experts. Instances where errors occur prompt rapid inquiry and, where necessary, disciplinary action. This transparency stands in marked contrast to Hamas’ total disregard for the laws of armed conflict and its exploitation of the people of Gaza as expendable assets.
Senior Israeli officials, including the Prime Minister and Defense Minister, reiterate that Israel’s right and duty to defend its citizens against genocidal terror commands steadfast resolve. The combined efforts of the IDF and Shin Bet, marked by precision strikes, intelligence-led raids, and painstaking hostage recovery missions, represent the front line in a broader battle for the survival of both Israel and the very norms underpinning international humanitarian law.
Conclusion
The conflict in Gaza, initiated by Hamas’ unprovoked and unprecedented violence, continues to test the limits of Israel’s operational, legal, and moral fortitude. The systematic exploitation of civilians by Hamas, coupled with the group’s overarching mission of destroying Israel, ensures that any resolution must confront not simply tactics, but an entire ideology of terror. As Israel continues its campaign to dismantle Hamas while upholding the highest possible standards of conduct, the world faces a crucial test: whether the rules meant to protect civilians, prevent atrocities, and ensure basic justice will be upheld, or whether terror’s contempt for human life will be allowed to prevail.
