Legality of the Israeli military operations in Gaza Strip and Lebanon in the aftermath of the Hamas October 7th attack on Israel

dc.abstract.en	This thesis analyzes the legality of Israeli military operations carried out in the Gaza Strip and Lebanon following the Hamas attack of 7 October 2023, within the framework of international law, Its primary aim is to assess whether Israel’s use of force complied with the legal standards governing both the resort to force (jus ad bellum) and the conduct of hostilities (jus in bello), as established by the United Nations Charter, international humanitarian law, and relevant international jurisprudence. The study proceeds from the premise that legal evaluations of armed conflict must consider the broader political, historical, and humanitarian context in which military operations occur. Accordingly, the thesis situates the events of October 2023 within the longer trajectory of Gaza’s structural vulnerability between 2006 and 2023, shaped by prolonged blockade, repeated military operations, political fragmentation, and the degradation of civilian infrastructure. A parallel contextual analysis addresses the situation in Lebanon after 2006, emphasizing persistent security tensions along the southern border and the role of non-state armed actors. The first research question examines whether Israel could lawfully invoke the right of self-defense under Article 51 of the UN Charter, While acknowledging that the 7 October attack met the threshold of an armed attack, the thesis advances the hypothesis that the legality of self-defense is conditioned by the requirements of necessity and proportionality, It argues that certain measures adopted during the subsequent campaign, including the imposition of siege conditions and the scale of military operations, raise serious legal concerns under jus ad bellum. The second research question assesses compliance with jus in bello, focusing on the principles of distinction, proportionality in attack, and precaution, drawing on reports by international organizations and documented patterns of harm, the thesis evaluates the impact of military operations on civilians, medical facilities, shelters, and essential services.
dc.affiliation	Uniwersytet Warszawski
dc.affiliation.department	Wydział Nauk Politycznych i Studiów Międzynarodowych
dc.contributor.author	Khalifa, Al Tayeb Yousef
dc.contributor.promoter	Ciechański, Jerzy
dc.contributor.reviewer	Haliżak, Marian
dc.contributor.reviewer	Ciechański, Jerzy
dc.date.defence	2026-02-25
dc.date.issued	2026
dc.date.submitted	2026-02-16
dc.identifier.apd	237950
dc.language	en
dc.language.other	pl
dc.publisher	Uniwersytet Warszawski
dc.rights	ClosedAccess
dc.subject.en	Politics
dc.subject.en	International Relations
dc.subject.en	International law
dc.subject.en	Middle east
dc.subject.en	Gaza strip
dc.subject.en	jus ad bello
dc.subject.en	UN charter
dc.title	Legality of the Israeli military operations in Gaza Strip and Lebanon in the aftermath of the Hamas October 7th attack on Israel
dc.title.alternative	Legalność działań zbrojnych Izraela w Strefie Gazy i Libanie w świetle prawa międzynarodowego po ataku Hamasu z dnia 7 października.
dc.type	MasterThesis