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Israel, backed by its supporters, has continued to parrot the same repetitive and deeply misleading narrative: that Palestinian civilian deaths are the result of Hamas using them as human shields. This claim is used to justify the targeting of innocent people and, disturbingly, even the number of casualties is questioned or downplayed.
By Abdullah M. Abu Shawesh
Ambassador of the State of Palestine to India
Since the beginning of this brutal and vicious war on Gaza, marked by the unprecedented targeting and mass elimination of civilians and an ever-deepening humanitarian catastrophe, Israel, backed by its supporters, has continued to parrot the same repetitive and deeply misleading narrative: that Palestinian civilian deaths are the result of Hamas using them as human shields. Despite the rising civilian death toll, this narrative is still used to justify the targeting of innocent people, and disturbingly, even the number of casualties is questioned or downplayed.
This claim has been widely accepted among Israel’s most loyal allies. For example, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock explicitly stated, without offering any evidence, that “Hamas is hiding behind civilians and using them as human shields,” effectively reinforcing a narrative used to justify Israel’s mass killing of civilians. Such statements, and the broader uncritical acceptance of this narrative across many Western nations, have gone largely unchallenged.
In the face of this intense polarization and widespread propaganda, we must step back and reassess. We are all morally obligated to distinguish between fact and fiction, to separate the wheat from the chaff. This demands applying logic and reason, rather than relying on emotional manipulation and manufactured media narratives.
Yes, Palestinian civilians have been used as human shields, but not by other Palestinians. In fact, numerous documented incidents from Gaza and the West Bank, including photos and eyewitness reports, show that Israeli soldiers have used Palestinian civilians as human shields, not only during this war but long before. This is not mere accusation; it is a fact confirmed by human rights organizations, Israeli media, videos, photos, and international observers.
If, as Israel claims, the use of human shields was truly a deliberate tactic of Hamas, then the most “effective” and “secure” human shields would have been the Israeli captives held in Gaza. According to the logic of the Israeli narrative, those captives would have offered the greatest protection, since Israel would be extremely reluctant to target its own citizens.
And yet, that’s not what happened. Top leaders of the military group, such as Yahya Sinwar, Marwan Issa, and Mohammad al-Deif, along with many others, were assassinated in highly targeted Israeli strikes. If the goal were to protect their own lives, nothing would have stopped these leaders from surrounding themselves with those captives and yet, they chose not to. They could have exploited that advantage, but they didn’t. This might appear to be a moral stance not often acknowledged by their enemies. It exposes the Israeli claim not only as flawed, but as profoundly dishonest.
To further illustrate the moral and legal bankruptcy of this justification, consider the airstrike on October 30, 2023, when the Israeli air force targeted Ibrahim al-Ghandour, an alleged leader figure, in the densely populated Jabalia refugee camp. The attack involved multiple 2,000-pound bombs and resulted in the deaths of 126 innocent Palestinians. Leave aside the hundreds of additional casualties, many of whom suffered life-changing injuries, and the massive destruction of the entire area. Even if the intended target was a wanted man, how can the killing of 126 civilians around him be justified? Is this “collateral damage,” or is it an atrocity hiding behind the language of security? It is clearly part of an intentional elimination strategy.
For the sake of argument, even if we temporarily accept the Israeli claim that military groups use civilians as human shields, two core principles must be acknowledged:
First: If the militant group is deemed a “terrorist organization,” as Israel and its allies assert, then the civilians under its rule are, by that same logic and by definition, victims of the group. As such, they are entitled to protection, not punishment. To bomb them indiscriminately is to victimize the victims.
Second: Israel is the occupying power, and under international law, it bears legal responsibility to protect the civilian population in Gaza, not to bomb them because they are being “used” by others as human shields. By deliberately attacking these civilians, Israel is not acting in self-defense but is committing a war crime, compounding the original abuse with another, graver violation.
The UN has stressed that Israel remains legally bound to protect civilians regardless of militant presence, while UN expert Francesca Albanese has warned that unsubstantiated claims of Palestinians being used as human shields are often used to justify indiscriminate attacks.
It will never be easy, especially for those unaccustomed to thinking critically about the information they receive, or for those who feel secure in their long-held beliefs. But truth demands effort. And justice begins when we are brave enough to question the stories we’ve been told, even when they comfort us.
The myth of the human shield is not just a lie; it is a weapon. A weapon wielded to justify the unjustifiable, to rationalize mass civilian slaughter, and to silence moral outrage. If the international community truly values human rights and the rule of law, it must reject this deceitful narrative and confront the reality: no people should be dehumanized into expendable collateral, and no military power should be allowed to rewrite the laws of war to suit its strategy of annihilation.
The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good people to do nothing. History will remember not only the crimes committed, but also those who remained silent in the face of them. Now is the time to speak out, to reject the propaganda, and to defend our shared humanity and future.