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Israel has warned its troops against posting about their actions in Gaza on social media, after a Brazilian court asked police to investigate an Israeli soldier visiting the country accused of participating in war crimes.
The action, which was initiated by the Hind Rajab Foundation (HRF), a pro-Palestinian group, is based in part on video footage and photographs that the HRF has shown that soldiers are participating in the demolition of Gaza houses.
Israel's foreign minister said on Sunday that Brazilian diplomatic officials immediately helped the man leave the country without being arrested.
The foreign minister draws the attention of Israelis on social media regarding their military service, and to the fact that people who are against Israel can use these posts to take legal action against them.
The Brussels-based HRF hailed as “severe” the decision by Brazil's federal court to accept jurisdiction over the matter and order urgent police action.
“This is a historic moment,” said Dyab Abou Jahjah, HRF chairman. “It sets a strong precedent for countries to take bold action in apprehending perpetrators of war crimes.”
The incident is the latest example of the legal fallout of Israel's offensive in Gaza, which has killed more than 45,800 people so far, according to Palestinian officials, reduced much of the area to uninhabitable waste and caused a humanitarian crisis.
Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid accused Benjamin Netanyahu's government of “Big political failure” over a paragraph, arguing that establishing a government commission of inquiry into the war – which Netanyahu has opposed – would help end those legal actions.
“How did we get to the point where the Palestinians are better than the Israeli government in the international arena?” wrote to X.
Israel launched an attack on Gaza in response to the attack on October 7, 2023, in which soldiers killed 1,200 people, according to Israeli officials, and took 250.
The UN High Court is hearing a case brought by South Africa accusing Israel of killing Palestinians in Gaza. Meanwhile, the International Criminal Court has issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and former defense minister Yoav Gallant for crimes against humanity and war crimes.
Israel strongly rejects the genocide allegations and calls South Africa's case “grossly distorted”. Israel says its forces in Gaza are acting in accordance with international law and Netanyahu's office has dismissed the arrest warrants as “antisemitic”.
Abou Jahjah said the HRF has submitted evidence to the ICC against 1,000 Israeli soldiers to help strengthen its case against Israeli leaders.
The group also compiled a list of soldiers it suspected of being involved in war crimes and was monitoring their movements through their social media accounts, he said.
“We knew he was in Brazil when he came in and we put a 400-page note on him just three days later,” said Abou Jahjah. “We are not targeting all Israeli soldiers, only those suspected of committing war crimes.”
He added that they were compiling evidence on alleged violations of international law “starting with breaking into homes and looting and destroying property and demolishing residential areas, including hospitals, public facilities and houses of worship”.
“People are being killed, people are being kidnapped, people are being tortured, and prisoners are being photographed,” he said.
HRF has also filed war crimes complaints against dozens of Israeli soldiers who are citizens of countries including Belgium, France and Holland with the intention of initiating prosecutions there.
Some of these cases are still in the early investigation stage, Abou Jahjah said, while others have been rejected by the country's judges and are being appealed by the HRF. “We are optimistic about the Belgian bills,” he said.