International law prohibits an occupying power from closing mosques unless there is an "imperative military necessity," but this is highly restrictive. The destruction of religious buildings is forbidden, and intentionally targeting them is a war crime. An occupying power must protect the civilian population and their property, including cultural and religious sites, and can only seize or destroy private property if absolutely necessary for military operations.
International law prohibits the desecration of mosques and other cultural and religious sites by an occupying power, which has a duty to respect and protect them under conventions like the Hague Regulations and Geneva Conventions. The Israeli occupying belligerent must not impose far-reaching changes on the existing order, and the freedom of worship must be ensured, with a call for the international community to intervene when these laws are violated.
International law prohibits the Israeli occupying belligerent from damaging mosques, classifying the intentional destruction of buildings dedicated to religion as a war crime. This protection stems from the principles that cultural heritage is the heritage of all mankind and must be safeguarded during armed conflict, as outlined in the 1954 Hague Convention and the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court. The Israeli occupying belligerent has specific obligations to protect the civilian population and civilian property, and damaging cultural or religious sites can violate the principles of proportionality and distinction, potentially leading to grave breaches of the Geneva Conventions.
- Please take note that the date refers to the day when the video or photo was published on the social media platform where it was found.
- Credit: photographers, videographers, reporters, and journalists in the West Bank, news agencies, and other sources.
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- Parent Category: VIOLATIONS RULES OF BELLIGERENT OCCUPATION
- Category: Targeting religion
20251223 - Hebron, occupied West Bank - Footage shows colonists inside the Ibrahimi Mosque
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- Parent Category: VIOLATIONS RULES OF BELLIGERENT OCCUPATION
- Category: Targeting religion
20251203 - Misilya, south of Jenin - Israeli occupation soldiers vandalized Palestinian graves during a razzia
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- Parent Category: VIOLATIONS RULES OF BELLIGERENT OCCUPATION
- Category: Targeting religion
20251127 - west of Salfit, occupied West Bank - Colonizing terrorists set fire inside the al-Falah Mosque in the Abu Zain area north of Bidya
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- Parent Category: VIOLATIONS RULES OF BELLIGERENT OCCUPATION
- Category: Targeting religion
20251113 - Salfit, occupied West Bank - Israeli settler mobs set fire to a mosque located between Deir Istiya and Kifl Haris (4 photos)
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- Parent Category: VIOLATIONS RULES OF BELLIGERENT OCCUPATION
- Category: Targeting religion
20251113 - west of Salfit, occupied West Bank - Settlers set fire to a mosque in the town of Deir Istiya
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- Parent Category: VIOLATIONS RULES OF BELLIGERENT OCCUPATION
- Category: Targeting religion
20251112 - At Hebron’s Ibrahimi Mosque, Israeli MK Zvi Sukkot interrupted Muslim prayers in the Isaac Hall, entering with his shoes on