Context: The UN General Assembly (UNGA) designated November 6 as the International Day for Preventing the Exploitation of the Environment in War and Armed Conflict on November 5, 2001.
- The day highlights the long-term environmental consequences of armed conflicts, including ecosystem degradation, depletion of natural resources and impacts extending beyond national boundaries and affecting future generations.
- Israel’s environmental responsibilities in Gaza arise both from its conduct during the ongoing armed conflict and its status as an occupying power.
International Legal Framework for Environmental Protection
- International Law Commission (ILC): Adopted 27 draft principles in its 2022 report titled Protection of the Environment in Relation to Armed Conflicts (PERAC). The UNGA formally took note of these principles on December 7, 2022.
- Objective: Strengthen environmental protection before, during and after armed conflicts, including situations of occupation.
- Principle 1: Establishes that environmental protection principles apply throughout all stages of armed conflict, including occupation.
- Principle 9: A State responsible for an internationally wrongful act causing environmental damage during armed conflict must provide full reparation, including compensation for damage to the environment itself.
Environmental Devastation in Gaza
- UNEP Report (September 23, 2025): The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), in its report Environmental Impact of the Conflict in the Gaza Strip, documented unprecedented environmental destruction following two years of escalating hostilities.
- Agricultural destruction: Since 2023, Gaza has lost 97% of its tree crops, 95% of its shrubland and 82% of its annual crops, severely threatening food security and pushing the population towards famine.
- Water resources: Freshwater resources are critically scarce and much of the remaining supply is contaminated. Destruction of sewage treatment facilities and piped water systems, along with increased reliance on cesspits, has worsened pollution of the aquifer.
- Marine ecosystem: Coastal and marine environments are also likely contaminated due to sewage discharge and destruction of sanitation infrastructure.
- Infrastructure destruction: Approximately 78% of Gaza's estimated 2,50,000 buildings have been damaged or destroyed, generating nearly 61 million tonnes of debris.
- Soil degradation: Loss of vegetation cover and soil compaction due to military activities have reduced soil quality, water absorption and groundwater recharge, while increasing flood risks.
- Limitations of data: UNEP's assessment does not capture the complete environmental damage, as destruction continues and available statistics rapidly become outdated.
Environmental Obligations of an Occupying Power
- Under the PERAC principles, an occupying power must:
- Administer and utilise natural resources in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT) for the benefit of its protected population.
- Ensure respect for and protection of the environment.
- Integrate environmental considerations into the administration of occupied territory.
- Resource exploitation: Israel has been accused of systematically extracting natural resources from the OPT and transferring them for its own benefit, contributing to environmental degradation.
- International Court of Justice (ICJ) Advisory Opinion, July 19, 2024: In Legal Consequences Arising from the Policies and Practices of Israel in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, Including East Jerusalem, the ICJ acknowledged issues relating to Israel's exploitation of natural resources and its obligations under international law.
- Such practices violate not only environmental obligations but also Palestinian collective rights, particularly:
- Permanent sovereignty over natural resources: The right of peoples to freely utilise and dispose of their natural wealth and resources.
- Right to self-determination: The right of peoples to determine their political status and pursue their economic, social and cultural development.
- Settlement expansion and resource appropriation: Territorial expansion, settlement construction and systematic appropriation of resources undermine these principles of international law.
Responsibility and Reparations under International Law
- Principle 9 of PERAC: A State committing an internationally wrongful act resulting in environmental damage during armed conflict bears international responsibility and must provide full reparation.
- Scope of reparation: Includes restoration of damaged ecosystems, compensation for environmental losses and other appropriate forms of reparation.
- Accordingly, the article argues that Israel has an international legal obligation to provide full reparation for environmental destruction in Gaza.
- The ICJ's July 19, 2024 advisory opinion also reaffirmed Israel's obligations arising from internationally wrongful acts in the occupied territory.
Broader Implications: Environment and Armed Conflict
- Intergenerational impact: Environmental destruction can persist long after hostilities end, affecting future generations through contaminated water, degraded agricultural land and damaged ecosystems.
- Transboundary consequences: Pollution, ecosystem degradation and resource depletion may extend beyond the geographical boundaries of conflict zones.
- Climate justice: The article argues that environmental justice and climate justice cannot be separated from questions of occupation, resource exploitation and the rights of affected populations.
- The author links the ecological destruction of Palestine to the broader settler-colonial project and calls for international recognition of the environmental dimensions of the conflict.
Important Institutions and Concepts for UPSC
- United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP): Principal UN body responsible for coordinating environmental activities and assisting countries in implementing environmentally sound policies.
- International Law Commission (ILC): UN subsidiary body established in 1947 to promote the progressive development and codification of international law.
- International Court of Justice (ICJ): Principal judicial organ of the United Nations; settles legal disputes between States and provides advisory opinions on legal questions referred to it by authorised UN organs and agencies.
- Advisory Opinion: A non-binding legal opinion issued by the ICJ on questions referred by authorised UN bodies. Although not binding like a judgment in a contentious case, it carries significant legal authority.
- Permanent Sovereignty over Natural Resources: Recognised under UNGA Resolution 1803 (XVII), 1962; affirms peoples' and nations' sovereignty over their natural wealth and resources.
