Just Because 25% of the IAGS says Israel Committed Genocide, Is It True? – Part One

Just when you think the antisemitic propaganda against Israel that provides moral support for Hamas terrorism could not get any worse, it got worse. The supposedly “world’s leading genocide scholars’ association” (no proof provided and no requirement to be a genocide scholar to be a member) has backed a resolution stating that Israel’s actions in Gaza meet the legal definition of the crime. It has been reported that 86% of the voting members approved of the resolution. However, there are 500 voting members (not all are experts on genocide, some are activists and artists) and only 28% voted. What organization allows a resolution to pass, reflecting the opinion of the organization, with the approval of only 25% of its members? Additionally, the organization refused to have a debate over the resolution, despite initially stating there would be a debate. Debate is the standard procedure before membership voting. Perhaps a reason why 75% of the membership did not approve of the resolution or even vote at all.

The International Association of Genocide Scholars (IAGS) is a group that was formed to get away from the Holocaust being the central focus of genocide studies. Years ago, one of the greatest Holocaust and genocide scholars of my generation, Israel Charney, warned about the growing antisemitism and anti-Israel sentiment within the organization. He was severely chastised over airing IAGS “dirty laundry.”

As befitting an organization that has been following a political, rather than scholarly, agenda when it comes to Israel’s actions, their resolution is replete with errors and omissions. The following is a partial list of the most egregious errors and omissions, when taken together, appears to be the same technique employed by David Irving when it was proven in court that he was a Holocaust denier and antisemite because of his errors and omissions.

1.  (T)he horrific Hamas-led attack of 7 October 2023, which itself constitutes international crimes – by the proof proffered by the IAGS that Israel committed genocide, Hamas and its willing executioners committed genocide. The IAGS does not mention that.
2. Accuses Israel of making indiscriminate and deliberate attacks against the civilians and civilian infrastructure (hospitals, homes, commercial buildings, etc.) of Gaza – IAGS does not mention that the hospitals, homes, commercial buildings, etc, in accordance with international law, are lawful targets when being used by Hamas to wage war, which has been proven.
3. Accuses Israel, “according to official UN estimates, at the date of this resolution, ha(ving) killed more than 59,000 adults and children” – That is not the UN’s estimate. It is Hamas’ estimate of Hamas terrorists, child soldiers, Hamas auxiliaries, Islamic Jihad terrorists, Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine terrorists, those who died of natural causes, and the unfortunate civilian fatalities due to Hamas deliberately operating in crowded residential areas and those who died when Hamas missiles aimed at Israeli population centers fell back into Gaza.
4. Accuses Israel of a list of violent interactions without mentioning that all the acts are unavoidable in a war.
5. Accuses Israel of having “killed or injured more than 50,000 children and that this destruction of a substantial part of a group constitutes genocide, as emphasized in a joint declaration of intervention in the International Court of Justice case of The Gambia v Myanmar” – Not because a court said so but because six other states said. Nowhere is this “proof” acceptable anywhere. Additionally, every Hamas soldier aged 14-17 is classified as a child.
6. Accuses Israel of having the intent to commit genocide because an Israeli Defense Minister and senior officers “characterize(ed) Palestinians in Gaza as a whole as enemies and “human animals” and stating the intention of inflicting “maximum damage” on Gaza, “flattening Gaza,” and turning Gaza into “hell” – The defense minister, on October 9^th, called Hamas “human animals.” Who, other than the Gazans celebrating 10/7, immediately following Hamas’ genocide, did not refer to Hamas as “human animals” and did not utter rhetoric calling for the destruction of Gaza? That is human nature. As far as what was known, up to 1,200 Israelis and residents, men, women, children, and babies were slaughtered, raped, burned alive and 250 men, women, children, and babies were kidnapped in the surreal attempt by Hamas to escape just retortion for committing genocide. What human would not utter such threats the day after? The courts do not see such rhetoric as proof of genocidal intent. 
7. Accuses Israel of planning ethnic cleansing – Ethnic cleansing is not a crime. Egypt has refused to allow refugees to enter without paying a hefty fee. When was the last time a neighboring state refused to accept refugees fleeing war? The only way to utterly destroy Hamas’ tunnel system without harming innocent civilians is for them to move to a place of safety. The IAGS seeks to criminalize a humanitarian plan because Israel is involved and benefits.

And this is just the preamble! Part two will go over more of the IAGS resolution.

Dr. Jack Frank Sigman, Ph.D.
Holocaust and Genocide Studies
Research Fellow, University of Arizona