Introduction
It has been two years since the infamous attack in Israel on October 7th, 2023, and the escalation of a conflict that dates back to 1946, which has led to intolerable suffering in the Gaza Strip. After two years, on October 10th, 2025, the ceasefire agreement was reached, allowing some humanitarian aid to enter Gaza. Despite this, the humanitarian situation in Gaza remains catastrophic (Red Cross, 2025). However, the primary purpose of international humanitarian law (IHL) is to restrict the means and methods of warfare and ensure the protection and humane treatment of persons who are not, or no longer, taking a direct part in hostilities (Melzer, 2019). When we look at the situation in Gaza today, we see a reality that seems to defy the purpose of the Geneva Conventions.
The main question here is: Where should we draw the line between military necessity and humanity? Israel often claims that it is using its right to self-defence while also attacking people who are not participating in the armed conflict (United Nations, 2024). Even if Israel is exercising the right to self-defence, this right is not absolute. It does not permit Israel to starve them by cutting off the essentials to survive. This article aims to address the nature of Israel’s legal obligations to the Gaza Strip, specifically in terms of the flow of humanitarian aid.
The Legal Status of Gaza
To determine Israel’s specific duties, we must first understand the legal status of the Gaza Strip. The obligations of a belligerent party differ significantly depending on whether the territory is considered occupied or a zone of active hostilities.
The legal definition of occupation is enshrined in international law, specifically in the Hague Regulations and the Fourth Geneva Convention. According to Article 42 of the Hague Regulations (1907), “territory is considered occupied when it is actually placed under the authority of the hostile army”. Military occupation is an asymmetric relationship, and the existence of an occupation implies that foreign forces are imposing their authority over the local government through military or coercive means. Moreover, Article 2(2) of the Fourth Geneva Convention states that “the Convention shall also apply to all cases of partial or total occupation of the territory of a High Contracting Party, even if the said occupation meets with no armed resistance”.
Effective control is a crucial component of an occupation. According to the Geneva Convention Commentary, an occupying power must exercise authority over a territory, even without a permanent military presence, as long as it controls borders, movements, and key governmental functions (ICRC, Commentary of 2016). This kind of control can persist even after troops withdraw, as long as the foreign power retains significant authority (ICRC, Commentary of 2016). Although Israel withdrew its military presence from Gaza in 2005, it still controls Gaza’s borders, airspace, maritime access, and also regulates the entry and exit of people and goods (Britannica, 2005). As the Geneva Convention Commentary emphasises, for an occupation to exist, the occupying power must establish effective control, which can manifest through the implementation of border control or movement restrictions. Moreover, technological advances can help maintain control without a continuous military presence. Therefore, even without troops on the ground, Israel can retain effective control, which means that Gaza remains occupied by Israel.
If we accept the fact that Gaza is an occupied territory, then there are some legal obligations and duties that the occupying power should comply with.
Article 55 of the Fourth Geneva Convention states:
To the fullest extent of the means available to it, the Occupying Power has the duty of ensuring the food and medical supplies of the population; it should, in particular, bring in the necessary foodstuffs, medical stores and other articles if the resources of the occupied territory are inadequate.
Based on this provision, Israel has a positive obligation to let humanitarian aid enter the Gaza Strip and feed the starving people there. Moreover, “if the whole or part of the population of an occupied territory is inadequately supplied, the Occupying Power should agree to relief schemes on behalf of the said population, and shall facilitate them by all means at its disposal” (Geneva Convention, Article 59).
Even if we accept Israel’s argument that Gaza is not occupied, the laws of armed conflict still impose some duties regarding humanitarian relief. Article 70 of the Additional Protocol I (API) mandates that if the civilian population is not adequately provided with supplies, “relief actions which are humanitarian and impartial in character and conducted without any adverse distinction shall be undertaken”. The rules of Customary IHL, as recorded by the International Committee of the Red Cross, more specifically, Rule 55, which applies to both international and non-international armed conflicts, reinforces this and states that the parties to a conflict must allow and facilitate the rapid and unimpeded passage of humanitarian relief for civilians in need. Each party to the conflict must refrain from deliberately impeding the delivery of relief supplies to civilians in need in areas under its control (Customary IHL rules, 2005). Moreover, under the statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC), “wilfully impeding relief supplies” as part of the use of starvation of civilians as a method of warfare is a war crime in international armed conflicts (ICC Statute, Article 8(2)(b)(xxv)).
Therefore, whether legally recognised as occupied or not, the result is the same: Israel has a duty to permit the entry of humanitarian aid. The refusal to do so must be based on valid and specific military reasons.
Starvation as a method of Warfare
The humanitarian crisis in Gaza has escalated into one of the most severe emergencies known in recent history, with starvation used increasingly as a deliberate tactic of warfare. Using starvation as a method of warfare is explicitly prohibited, as mentioned above, under Article 54 of AP I, and it is also defined as a war crime under Article 8(2)(b)(xxv) of the Rome Statute of the ICC. These frameworks recognise actions, such as destroying agricultural infrastructure, blocking humanitarian aid, and depriving civilians of essential resources, as illegal (Article 54, AP I).
Reportedly, since Hamas-led fighters attacked Israel in October 2023, Israeli officials have made public statements and said that they aim to deprive civilians of food, water, and fuel in Gaza, while others said that humanitarian aid to Gaza would be conditioned either on the release of hostages unlawfully held by Hamas or Hamas’ destruction (Human Rights Watch, 2023). Soon after the conflict escalated, in November 2023, the displaced Palestinians in Gaza described their hardships in securing necessities. According to them, they had no food, no electricity, nothing at all, and they were constantly searching for the essentials they needed to survive (Human Rights Watch, 2023). In November 2023, the World Food Programme (WFP) warned of the ‘immediate possibility’ of starvation because food and water supplies were practically non-existent (WFP, 2023). In December 2023, the WFP reported a “high risk of famine” and indicated that Gaza’s food system “was on the brink of collapsing” (Relief Web, 2023). Later that month, WFP announced that 48 percent of households in Northern Gaza and 38 percent of displaced people in southern Gaza experienced “severe levels of hunger” (WFP, 2023).
It has been two years since these statements, and the humanitarian situation in Gaza has only gotten worse. According to the Red Cross, the collapse of the health system, coupled with continued fighting and the complete suspension of aid delivery, led to an unprecedented rise in unmet humanitarian and medical needs (Red Cross, 2025).
Malnutrition in Gaza is one of the most significant problems, and it has reached catastrophic levels two years after the conflict escalated (British Red Cross, 2025). In August 2025, the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) declared famine in areas of Gaza, approximately 470,000 people, translating to 22 percent of the population, are facing the imminent threat of starvation (British Red Cross, 2025). All three thresholds of famine, (i) catastrophic hunger, (ii) acute malnutrition, and (iii) mass death, have been officially surpassed (Rescue, 2025). Children, pregnant women, and the elderly are suffering the most. Experts also explain that the lasting health damage caused by malnutrition may be irreversible for the thousands of children being affected, because the malnutrition weakens the immune system and leaves people unable to fight off disease and infection (British Red Cross, 2025). Moreover, Gaza’s health systems have severely deteriorated, and access to safe drinking water and sanitation services has been drastically reduced. Some infections, specifically respiratory and skin infections, are alarmingly high among children (WHO, 2025).
The World Health Organization and other international organisations stated that a ceasefire was an absolute necessity and the only option. A ceasefire agreement was reached on October 10th, 2025, allowing the release of hostages and increased aid entering Gaza. A month after the ceasefire agreement was reached, the Commissioner-General of the United Nations (UN) Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) labelled this ceasefire as “fragile” (UNRWA, 2025). Even after the ceasefire agreement was signed, efforts to increase humanitarian aid are still hampered by red tape, ongoing bans on key humanitarian partners, and too few border crossings and routes (United Nations, 2025).
The international community, at least part of it, concluded that depriving a population of humanitarian aid is a war crime. The ICC issued its first-ever arrest warrant, citing article 8(2)(b)(xxv) for arrest warrants for the Israeli Defence Minister and the Prime Minister for their roles in “causing extermination, causing starvation as a method of war, including the denial of humanitarian relief supplies, deliberately targeting civilians in conflict” (CSIS, 2025).
The Role of the International Court of Justice (ICJ)
In October 2025, the United Nations’ Court, the International Court of Justice (ICJ), said that Israel has an obligation to ensure the “basic needs” of the population in Gaza (Al Jazeera, 2025). The Court also held that Israel is in breach of its obligations as a UN Member State by having failed to do so adequately over the past two years (The Conversation, 2025). The ICJ’s advisory opinion stems from an urgent request by the UN General Assembly in December 2024, seeking that the Court clarify Israel’s obligations to the activities of the UN, third states, and other international organisations in the occupied territory (Request for Advisory Opinion, 2024). The request was submitted after Israel’s campaign to dismantle UNRWA in Gaza. UNRWA is the largest humanitarian organisation in Gaza, with 12,000 Palestinian staff based there (BBC, 2025). The Court stated that the UNRWA was the backbone of all humanitarian assistance in the area, and Israel should have cooperated with the organisation instead of ending the relationship with it. The Court also stated that this obligation applies to “relief schemes provided by the United Nations and its entities, including UNRWA” (Human Rights Watch, 2025).
The ICJ, in its opinion, highlighted Israel’s obligation as an occupying power under IHL to ensure the unhindered provision of humanitarian relief, including food, medical supplies, and clothing (Human Rights Watch, 2025). The Court said that Israel, as an occupying power, is under a duty not to use starvation as a method of warfare, pointing out that the Israeli government blocked all UN aid into Gaza from March to May (The Guardian, 2025). The Court also clarified that Israel had no right to block aid, or force hundreds of thousands of people into crowded areas, or to restrict the presence of the UN to a degree that created conditions of life that would force the population to leave (The Guardian, 2025). Israel had a duty to respect the immunities and privileges granted to the UN, its entities, properties, and its personnel to operate in the occupied territories.
In its verdict, the ICJ unanimously reaffirmed that the use of starvation as a method of warfare is prohibited under international law and ordered Israel to agree to and facilitate humanitarian relief in Gaza provided by the UN and its entities (The Conversation, 2025). Moreover, the Court found that an occupying power must do more than simply allow the passage of essential items into the occupied territory; it must also use all means at its disposal to ensure that these items are distributed in a regular, fair, and non-discriminatory manner (The Guardian, 2025).
Although the advisory opinion is non-binding, it is critical that the ICJ clarified one more time that Israel must ensure Palestinians are adequately supplied with the essentials of their daily lives and that Israel cannot unilaterally decide to shut down the UNRWA, the lead agency delivering aid in Gaza, or impede any other UN agencies.
Conclusion
The legal framework regarding the occupied territories and humanitarian aid is clear, but the reality on the ground is different. As analysed in the article, whether we consider Gaza as an occupied territory or a zone of active hostilities, Israel has a binding legal obligation to ensure that the civilian population has access to humanitarian aid. The arguments regarding military necessity cannot really legally justify the starvation of the population and the collapse of the health system that we are witnessing two years after the conflict escalated.
The recent ruling by the ICJ in October 2025 is a very crucial step forward. By clarifying that Israel should support, not hinder, the work of UNRWA and other UN entities, the Court has reaffirmed that humanitarian aid is not a political bargaining chip. IHL was created precisely for moments like this, to ensure that even in war, people are treated humanely.
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