Rules of behavior during an armed conflict -- Version 1.0

Rules of behavior during an armed conflict--Version 1.0
By Yuval Yoaz -- Haaretz
Saturday, March 11, 2003
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"During the course of the evacuation of the U.S. Embassy in Yemen, an American force encounters serious rioting, with snipers shooting from adjacent rooftops and an excited crowd, including women and children, shooting and throwing stones and Molotov cocktails at the building. The commander of the force chooses to open fire on the crowd, without making any distinctions." This description, taken from the American film "Rules of Engagement," appears on the Israel Defense Forces simulated educational program for combatants, which is now being distributed to most of the field units and the officers, regarding proper behavior at the IDF checkpoints in the territories.
The program outlines 11 rules of behavior for IDF soldiers during their operational activity in the territories. The subjects include "operational activity," "necessary force," "weaponry," "respect and humaneness," "cultural and religious artifacts," "those who surrender, or are captured, detained or delayed," "the wounded and the ill," "foreign representatives and members of international organizations," "treatment of special populations," and "reporting."
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Another rule the program preaches relates to the wounded and the ill: "Bring in every sick person and provide treatment in accordance with his condition," the program instructs the soldier, "whether he is one of our men or not." But immediately after the rule has been defined, with one click a cute animated clip appears on the screen, which explains to the soldier that a Palestinian ambulance from which armed Palestinians are firing at IDF soldiers no longer receives protection as a vehicle belonging to medical teams.
Later the soldier learns one of the rules that will probably be the most significant during the course of his operational activity in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip: "During the course of your activity," explains the program, "you are liable to encounter special populations that require special treatment. You must check the special orders regarding these populations with your commander." The three special groups are: journalists, MKs and settlers. "Journalists must be treated with respect and patience, and they must be allowed to complete their journalistic assignment," and the explanation is immediately followed by a restriction: "In a case where another order has been given, you may prevent journalists from covering or photographing ." This part of the program ends with a minor warning: "You are not to be interviewed by the media without receiving permission from an IDF spokesman."
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The writing of the IDF software program involved theoretical legal work in addition to gathering the operational information from the field. The center for publishing legal material at the School of Military Law (which publishes the periodicals Mishpat Vetzava - Law and the Army and IDF Law Review) prepared a file containing Supreme Court decisions in all the appeals relating to IDF activity in the territories during the period of conflict: the battle in the Jenin refugee camp; the demolition of houses; the right to plead before the legal instances before the implementation of actions that damage human rights; prison conditions; administrative detention; the siege of the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem. At the same time, they completed a guide that is the first of its kind in the world, which includes comparative law regarding the rules of war and armed conflict, with materials from Australia, Canada, the United States, Israel and the Red Cross.
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Read the rest here.

check link.

Correct link here: http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/objects/pages/PrintArticleEn.jhtml?itemNo=402997

Like this one....

"In cases where the conclusion is that the damage is significantly greater than the benefit, the attack should not be carried out, and alternatives should be sought."

This troubles me...

"Even if the soldiers religiously obey the series of rules that the program - which draws its inspiration from international law - is trying to teach them, it still doesn't mean that their activities are not violating one of the Geneva Conventions."

And, of course....

"And almost defiantly, the program makes no mention of the separation fence that is being built in the territories."

I hope this training package has some effect on IDF operations. Time will tell, I guess. The problem I saw with it was mentioned in the article:

"The problem lies in the incompatibility that may be discovered between the instructions received by the soldier, which he has to carry out, and the rules of international law with which Israel, as the ruling power in the territories, is conducting a complex dialogue. And that is also the major shortcoming of the program: Even if the soldiers religiously obey the series of rules that the program - which draws its inspiration from international law - is trying to teach them, it still doesn't mean that their activities are not violating one of the Geneva Conventions regarding the rules of armed conflict or human rights."

Another problem I have with it is those 'special groups' that get treated differently at checkpoints. I sure hope they aren't expected to treat settlers with respect, because as far as I'm concerned settlers deserve none. A better inclusion as a special group would have been all civilians regardless of who or what they are, and if they couldn't manage that, there should have been some mention of the disabled and seriously ill who currently are forced to sit and wait at checkpoints for however long the troops on duty want them to....

Violet...

solved by adding some new sets of rules. They must be
addressed directly. Still the effort must be supported.
It is not nothing. It may help.