International Law Expert Says Gaza Not Occupied
Hamas gunmen who control the Gaza Strip
We’ve commented before on the unquestioning acceptance by some journalists of the view that the Gaza Strip remains occupied even after Israel’s pullout, despite disagreement within the scholarly community about the question. Eugene Kontorovich, Yuval Shani, Eyal Benvenisti, Ruth Lapidoth, Elizabeth Samson, Solon Solomon, Benjamin Rubin, Avi Bell, and Justus Reid Weiner have all argued the territory is no longer under Israeli occupation.
In a piece in the Washington Post‘s Volokh Conspiracy today, Kontorovich elaborates on “Why Gaza is not remotely occupied,” as his headline puts it.
An occupation is traditionally defined as a power exercising “effective control” over the territory in a way that displaces the prior government. The occupying power is expected to provide law and order, essential services, and all the basic functions of government – and is thus required to have the kind of control that allows for that. As the ICJ has put it, occupation requires a territory to be “actually placed under the authority of the hostile army.” There has never been a finding of a such “remote” occupation, lasting nine years after the end of physical occupation and in the presence of a distinct and hostile local government. Indeed, even puppet governments are not considered occupation by the puppet master.
You can read more, including how the recent precedent of Uganda v. Congo should inform views of the Gaza situation, at the source here.
Update: And definitely don’t miss May 16, 2025 Anti-Israel activists, including Harvard University’s Lara Jirmanus, a clinical instructor, seem to struggle with the concept of “discrimination.” Quoted in a May 14 MassLive article, “Harvard ‘failed to respond’ to 450 discrimination complaints. Staff hand-delivered [...] May 14, 2025 Students at Swarthmore College are so close to understanding the conflict. An article in the Swarthmore Phoenix details the frustrations of student activists with the college’s Students for Justice in Palestine. The gist of their criticism is [...] August 10, 2021 A view of Metulla, northern Israel (Photo by Hadar Sela)After failing to set the record straight last May when Agence France Presse's Arabic service repeatedly referred to Jewish communities in northern Israel as "settlements," the [...] August 19, 2020 A recent New York Times book review boosts Rep. Ilhan Omar’s (D-MN) autobiography while glossing over her antisemitism. In the paper’s Aug. 16, 2020 edition, NYT reporter Christina Cauterucci writes: The memoir offers breathing room [...] August 11, 2020 Rep. Ilhan Omar’s (D-MN) documented animosity toward Jews and Israel was ignored in recent interviews by MSNBC and C-SPAN. MSNBC’s The Beat for July 23, 2020 included host Ari Melber’s 10-minute conversation at 6:16 [...] July 7, 2020 WCVB-TV (channel 5) (Boston’s ABC network affiliate) recently misled area viewers about a matter involving antisemitic propaganda. This occurred on its local Sunday show Cityline hosted by Karen Holmes Ward who is described by the [...] June 2, 2020 Writing in Harper's, Kevin Baker condemns the U.S. Middle East peace plan [“The Striking Gesture,” Easy Chair, May 2020], mischaracterizing it as, “Give up all your [Palestinian] hopes and your holiest places, embark on a [...]
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