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Dutch Supreme Court Confirms Immunity of Former Israeli Officers over a Deadly 2014 Gaza Airstrike

Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz, speaks during a joint press conference with his Greek counterpart Nikos Panagiotopoulos, at the Greek Ministry of Defence, in Athens, Greece, Friday, Nov. 18, 2022. (AP)
Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz, speaks during a joint press conference with his Greek counterpart Nikos Panagiotopoulos, at the Greek Ministry of Defence, in Athens, Greece, Friday, Nov. 18, 2022. (AP)
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Dutch Supreme Court Confirms Immunity of Former Israeli Officers over a Deadly 2014 Gaza Airstrike

Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz, speaks during a joint press conference with his Greek counterpart Nikos Panagiotopoulos, at the Greek Ministry of Defence, in Athens, Greece, Friday, Nov. 18, 2022. (AP)
Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz, speaks during a joint press conference with his Greek counterpart Nikos Panagiotopoulos, at the Greek Ministry of Defence, in Athens, Greece, Friday, Nov. 18, 2022. (AP)

The Dutch Supreme Court on Friday upheld a ruling that a Palestinian man cannot sue Israel's former defense minister and another former senior military officer over their roles in a deadly 2014 Gaza airstrike.

The highest Dutch court confirmed findings by judges in two lower courts that Benny Gantz and former Air Force Commander Amir Eshel are protected from civil proceedings in the Netherlands because they have “functional immunity.”

The long-running case was brought by Ismail Ziada, who lost six members of his family in the airstrike that lawyers for the two Israelis argued was part of an Israeli military operation during the 2014 Gaza conflict.

Ziada wanted the Dutch court to order Gantz and Eshel to pay damages. His legal team argued that the men didn’t have immunity because their actions amounted to war crimes.

In a written reaction, Ziada said he was “disappointed and angered” by the Supreme Court ruling and is considering appealing to the European Court of Human Rights.

“The Court has once again chosen to put politics over people and blocked access to justice. Today’s ruling only deepens the injustice we have suffered,” he added.

Israel’s Justice Ministry told a lower Dutch court that an internal Israeli military investigation determined the airstrike had killed four militants hiding in the house. It said the attack was permissible under international law. Gaza’s Hamas rulers themselves have said that two militants were in the building.

Gantz thanked his country's justice and foreign ministries for leading “the push that led to the dismissal of the lawsuit against me and against the former Air Force Commander Major General (ret.) Amir Eshel in the Netherlands.”

Gantz — who was military chief of staff at the time of the airstrike in Gaza — and Eshel had immunity because they were carrying out Israeli government policies, Dutch courts in The Hague ruled. The Supreme Court agreed in a short written ruling issued Friday.

Gantz is now head of the centrist opposition party National Unity in the Israeli Knesset. Eshel, a former director general of the Defense Ministry, was named this month as a senior fellow at the hawkish Washington-based Foundation for Defense of Democracies.

Gantz welcomed the dismissal of the lawsuit, crediting what he described as Israel’s “strong and independent judicial system” that protects Israeli soldiers and commanders “even in front of international courts.”

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s conservative government is currently pushing to overhaul the country’s judicial system and weaken the Supreme Court, a move that the Israeli security establishment has worried could render the country more vulnerable to international prosecution.

“As the system protects us — it is our duty to protect it and preserve its strength and independence,” Gantz said.

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Arab World

Media Rights Group Urges Pressure on Israel over Deadly 2023 Strike

Lebanese army soldiers inspect a damaged vehicle marked with 'Press' at the site of an Israeli strike that killed a few journalists and wounded several others as they slept in guesthouses used by media, Lebanon's health ministry and local media reported, in Hasbaya in southern Lebanon, October 25, 2024. REUTERS/Stringer
Lebanese army soldiers inspect a damaged vehicle marked with 'Press' at the site of an Israeli strike that killed a few journalists and wounded several others as they slept in guesthouses used by media, Lebanon's health ministry and local media reported, in Hasbaya in southern Lebanon, October 25, 2024. REUTERS/Stringer
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Media Rights Group Urges Pressure on Israel over Deadly 2023 Strike

Lebanese army soldiers inspect a damaged vehicle marked with 'Press' at the site of an Israeli strike that killed a few journalists and wounded several others as they slept in guesthouses used by media, Lebanon's health ministry and local media reported, in Hasbaya in southern Lebanon, October 25, 2024. REUTERS/Stringer
Lebanese army soldiers inspect a damaged vehicle marked with 'Press' at the site of an Israeli strike that killed a few journalists and wounded several others as they slept in guesthouses used by media, Lebanon's health ministry and local media reported, in Hasbaya in southern Lebanon, October 25, 2024. REUTERS/Stringer

The Committee to Protect Journalists on Tuesday urged pressure on Israel including potential economic consequences if it does not hold responsible troops behind a deadly 2023 strike on reporters in Lebanon.

A Reuters journalist was killed and two AFP reporters were seriously wounded when they came under fire in southern Lebanon close to the border with Israel on October 13, 2023.

Investigations by both news agencies as well as several non-governmental groups concluded that Israel carried out the attack.

The Committee to Protect Journalists, a New York-based group advocating freedom of the press, said that the European Union should consider a suspension of its agreement allowing free trade with Israel unless Israel takes responsibility.

"With Israel's blatant failure to take accountability, we call on the international community to pressure Israeli officials to complete a probe naming the units and individuals responsible for the deliberate attacks against journalists," said Sara Qudah, Middle East regional director for the Committee to Protect Journalists.

"The failure to hold those responsible to account," she said, "puts other journalists at risk by allowing impunity to persist."

"The suspension of the EU-Israel Association Agreement is one of the few remaining avenues that could create a meaningful pressure to break this cycle of impunity," she said.

The Israeli military, asked by AFP for an update on the case, said the incident had been "referred to the General Staff Fact-Finding Assessment Mechanism for a comprehensive factual review", without further details on a timeline.

It said the Israeli army “does not target journalists .. It makes every effort to minimize harm to uninvolved civilians while maintaining the security of its troops," it said.

- Israeli envoy says strike a 'mistake' -

Reuters video journalist Issam Abdallah was killed in the strike, which wounded six other journalists.

They included AFP's Dylan Collins and Christina Assi, whose leg had to be amputated after the attack.

Israel's ambassador to France earlier this year for the first time acknowledged that Israeli forces struck the journalists and said it was "a mistake".

Ambassador Joshua Zarka, speaking on French television, said the reporters "were not targeted because they were journalists" as "the soldiers on the ground thought that they were terrorists".

The attack came days after Hamas attacked from the Gaza Strip in the deadliest-ever attack against Israel.

Israel since then has repeatedly pounded Lebanon, saying it is seeking to eradicate Hezbollah, which like Hamas has enjoyed support from Iran's clerical government.

AFP's Assi, who received CPJ's 2026 International Press Freedom Award, said it was critical to see who in Israel was responsible.

"We need to know who did this to us," she said.

Arab World

Sudan’s al-Burhan Orders Investigation Into Deadly Airstrike on Gold Mine

Sudan's army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan gestures to soldiers inside the presidential palace after the Sudanese army said it had taken control of the building, in the capital Khartoum, Sudan March 26, 2025. Sudan Transitional Sovereignty Council/Handout via REUTERS
Sudan's army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan gestures to soldiers inside the presidential palace after the Sudanese army said it had taken control of the building, in the capital Khartoum, Sudan March 26, 2025. Sudan Transitional Sovereignty Council/Handout via REUTERS
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Sudan’s al-Burhan Orders Investigation Into Deadly Airstrike on Gold Mine

Sudan's army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan gestures to soldiers inside the presidential palace after the Sudanese army said it had taken control of the building, in the capital Khartoum, Sudan March 26, 2025. Sudan Transitional Sovereignty Council/Handout via REUTERS
Sudan's army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan gestures to soldiers inside the presidential palace after the Sudanese army said it had taken control of the building, in the capital Khartoum, Sudan March 26, 2025. Sudan Transitional Sovereignty Council/Handout via REUTERS

Sudan's army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan has ordered a probe into what he called a "painful incident" near the Egyptian border, where an airstrike hit a gold mine two days earlier.

The estimated death toll from the airstrike has risen to more than 200 dead, with dozens wounded and missing.

Both the National Umma Party and the Darfur Victims Advocacy organization put the death toll at 200 and the number of injured at around 120.

The Emergency Lawyers, a rights group documenting abuses in the war between Sudan's army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), said the strike in the mountainous Jabal al-Uqaydat mining area on Saturday killed 72 people.

In a statement on Monday, Sudan's Transitional Sovereignty Council, which Burhan heads as army chief, said he had formed a fact-finding committee made up of prosecutors, judicial officials and security representatives "to investigate the circumstances of the incident" and "submit a report on the results.”

The council added that Sudanese and Egyptian authorities "had remained in contact" since the strike to determine what happened.

In a phone call with his Sudanese counterpart on Monday, Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty stressed the "mutual respect that binds the two brotherly nations,” including respect for each state's "territorial integrity and safety of its territory and borders.”

Arab World

Syria Establishes ‘Capital Security Service’ to Bolster Damascus Security

Syria's Interior Minister Anas Khattab (C) inspects an area near the Four Seasons Hotel following two blasts in Damascus on July 7, 2026. (Photo by LOUAI BESHARA / AFP)
Syria's Interior Minister Anas Khattab (C) inspects an area near the Four Seasons Hotel following two blasts in Damascus on July 7, 2026. (Photo by LOUAI BESHARA / AFP)
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Syria Establishes ‘Capital Security Service’ to Bolster Damascus Security

Syria's Interior Minister Anas Khattab (C) inspects an area near the Four Seasons Hotel following two blasts in Damascus on July 7, 2026. (Photo by LOUAI BESHARA / AFP)
Syria's Interior Minister Anas Khattab (C) inspects an area near the Four Seasons Hotel following two blasts in Damascus on July 7, 2026. (Photo by LOUAI BESHARA / AFP)

Syria established a special security service apparatus for its capital, Damascus, in a bid to bolster security, uncover sleeper cells and thwart attempts to destabilize the city, a senior Syrian military official told Asharq Al-Awsat Tuesday.

The official told the daily that the Capital Security Service was established and Brig. Gen. Abdul Aziz Hilal al-Ahmad appointed as its chief to “bolster security in Damascus through a more targeted approach and uncover any sleeper cells seeking to undermine the capital’s security.”

The official said he did not believe Damascus faced any immediate threat, but warned that “sabotage cells” continued to seek to undermine security in the capital, driven by foreign agendas and ties. He also accused Israel and Iran of seeking to destabilize Syria by backing local sabotage groups operating across several provinces.

The official stressed that Damascus hosts foreign embassies, diplomatic missions and offices of international and United Nations agencies and organizations, making it a key center of state sovereignty. Any breach of the capital’s security would undermine the state’s credibility and authority, he said, adding that the new service was intended to thwart attempts to unsettle the city.

Brig. Gen. Abdul Aziz Hilal al-Ahmad previously headed internal security in Latakia province, where he led operations against armed groups and former military and security figures linked to Bashar al-Assad’s regime after taking office on May 25, 2025.

No official decree announcing al-Ahmad’s appointment has been issued, though security and military sources confirmed it to several media outlets, including Asharq Al-Awsat. On Saturday, the Interior Ministry named Brig. Gen. Nayef al-Ibrahim as his successor in Latakia.

Since the ouster of the former regime, Syria’s new authorities have worked to rebuild and modernize the security sector with regional and international support. However, repeated security incidents in Damascus over the past two years have underscored persistent instability and security gaps, with experts saying much work remains to prevent further bombings.

Wael Alwan, executive director of the Jusoor Center for Studies, told Asharq Al-Awsat that authorities were working to restore security and stability across Syria, but intelligence reports pointed to activity in Damascus by Iran-backed Hezbollah and affiliated local groups, as well as ISIS.

He said previous attacks by ISIS cells and remnants of the former regime appeared aimed more at generating media attention than striking strategic security, political or military targets, citing rocket fire toward the Mazzeh area and explosions during the French president’s visit.

Alwan said Iran-backed groups, ISIS and Israeli interference sought to portray Syria as unstable and its government as unable to maintain security, undermining recovery by deterring investment, curbing tourism and deepening economic and social pressures. He added that Iran stood to benefit from chaos, which could create opportunities for its allied militias and former regime loyalists to return, rebuild their networks and expand their influence.

Alwan said the establishment of the Capital Security Service reflected the government’s cautious approach and efforts to preempt security threats by strengthening surveillance and intelligence capabilities to track former regime loyalists, ISIS cells and Iran-backed operatives, and thwart attacks before they occur.

For his part, Syrian political and security researcher Diaa Qaddour told Asharq Al-Awsat that the appointment was part of a broader restructuring of security agencies following the ouster of the former regime, reflecting a focus on securing the capital against threats from ISIS and dormant Iran-linked cells to reinforce state authority and prevent chaos.