A fact sheet on the ability of the civil defense to perform its duties during the Israeli military aggression on the Gaza Strip.

As part of its follow-up to the human rights and humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip, and the continuation of the war crime waged by the Israeli occupation state against the Gaza Strip, the ICHR issued a fact sheet on the capability of civil defense to carry out its responsibilities during the Israeli military aggression on the Gaza Strip. The paper discusses the effects of the military aggression on the sector, data on the reality of civil defense before the current military aggression, the direct targeting of civil defense crews, the international protection umbrella for civil defense operations, civil defense as the hero of hard times in the Gaza Strip, and the conclusion.

The paper pointed out that the civil defense in the Gaza Strip plays an important role in protecting and assisting civilians during disasters and wars, and is a real hero due to its important role in repeated aggressions, especially in the recent and ongoing military aggression. Since the beginning of the aggression, it has been carrying out ambulance, firefighting, rescue, and extracting citizens from under the rubble, transferring them to hospitals, and inspecting homes, buildings, mosques, and service centers that were bombed.

The civil defense carries out its tasks in extremely difficult and dangerous conditions, without local, international, or regional supporting bodies, or units contributing to the provision of services to civilians, placing the entire burden on the shoulders of the civil defense, despite its limited financial and logistical capabilities and the limited number of its human cadres, which fundamentally lack qualification and training, and equipment. The apparatus mainly relies on external financial donations to create new equipment or rehabilitate civil defense centers.

The paper referred to the Israeli occupation forces deliberate targeting of civil defense crews to kill and undermine any efforts to protect civilians and their property, and to prevent the provision of relief to them, in its pursuit to kill everything that is related to Palestine and Palestinians in the sector. The number of martyrs from the civil defense reached (16) martyrs (as of 27/10/2023), while they were performing their duties in search and rescue and firefighting.

Civil defense bodies have the protection provided by the rules of international humanitarian law applicable to all civilians and civilian objects in general. The Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949 prohibits attacks on civil defense personnel while performing their duties during armed conflicts. The First Additional Protocol to the Geneva Conventions, adopted in 1977, clearly defined this protection, and the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949 requires the warring parties to distinguish between civilian populations and combatants, and the term 'civilian population' includes all civilians residing in the territory of the warring states and civilians residing in the occupied territories, and anyone who does not 'fight' participate directly in hostilities is considered a civilian.

The paper concluded that there is a need for urgent and immediate intervention by the international community and humanitarian and human rights institutions to stop the aggression, and for the international community and the High Contracting Parties to the four Geneva Conventions of 1949 to stand before their legal and moral obligations to exert pressure on the occupying state, calling on the international community to stand before its responsibilities by taking necessary measures to facilitate the entry of necessary supplies and equipment to enable the civil defense to carry out its assigned tasks urgently, and to hold the Israeli occupation accountable for its execution of war crimes and crimes against humanity under the jurisdiction of the permanent International Criminal Court, and inviting international institutions and Arab states to send civil defense teams with their equipment and heavy machinery; to provide support to civil defense crews in dealing with the dangerous catastrophic situation, and to remove the rubble of destroyed houses. Full fact sheet.