Lebanon last week backtracked on its decision to authorize the International Criminal Court to investigate alleged Israeli war crimes in the country. Israel has been accused of committing several war crimes in Lebanon. It deliberately killed a journalist. It has unlawfully used white phosphorus in south Lebanon. However, Lebanon is willingly missing an opportunity to hold Israel accountable.

To an outsider, this is mind-boggling, but in the context of Lebanon it is not. Since Israel’s latest war on Gaza started, there have been skirmishes between Hezbollah and Israel. Tel Aviv has carried out several assassinations in Lebanon and the latter has been continuously filing complaints to the UN. However, no decisions have come from the UN Security Council in this regard. Now, Lebanon has retracted its previous decision to allow the ICC to investigate. Since neither Lebanon nor Israel are members of the court, it needs special permission to conduct any investigation.

A member of parliament close to Speaker Nabih Berri, who is in Hezbollah’s orbit, demanded this revision. Though an ICC investigation would be an opportunity to hold Israel accountable, from Hezbollah’s perspective, it entails a risk. There is a risk that the investigation might somehow lead to the issuing of arrest warrants against Hezbollah members.

Basically, the interests of a few individuals have been put above the interest of the country. This is not far from previous positions taken by the Lebanese government. In September 2019, Amer Fakhoury, nicknamed the “Butcher of Khiam” — Khiam being the notorious Israeli prison in south Lebanon — was arrested soon after returning to the country. Fakhoury gained his nickname due to his alleged torture of detainees on behalf of Israel. The Israeli agent was released a few months later despite the public anger of the people of south Lebanon, who had suffered so much from his brutality. A deal was said to have been sealed between Gebran Bassil and the US. Bassil apparently wanted to court the Americans to avoid sanctions.

The same thing is happening today. The dignity and interests of the Lebanese people are being traded for the interests of a few powerful people. How can this be possible? It is because there is no system of accountability in Lebanon. The Lebanese government has stated that it will look for other venues to seek justice. However, this does not trump the fact that the government has traded the interests of the nation to protect a few privileged people.

The initial request for the ICC to investigate came from one pro-change MP, Halima Kaakour. She holds a doctorate in international law. Lebanon has been filing Israel’s transgressions ever since the war started, but nothing has happened. With the ICC, things might have turned out differently. They also have a precedent. The ICC prosecutor is seeking arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his Defense Minister Yoav Gallant. Hence, the ICC has shown that it is seeking to hold Israel accountable. However, the Lebanese Cabinet that gave approval to involve the ICC in April has changed its mind. Kaakour, as well as anyone else, knows that the UN will not issue any binding resolutions on Lebanon.
However, this is an issue the change members of parliament like Kaakour need to cling on to. Demanding accountability from Israel is an issue on which there is a general consensus. Once they raise it in the public sphere and once the idea circulates, the Lebanese will be reminded that they need to ask for accountability.

Not only from Israel, but from everyone who hurt them, including the corrupt political class and its subordinate corrupt bankers.

Unfortunately, at this moment, nothing can be done regarding the ICC investigation into Israeli crimes in Lebanon. According to judge Choucri Sader, the former president of the Lebanese State Council, the law is not a zipper that can be zipped and unzipped. If a plaintiff retracts his demands, the case is nixed. He added that such a decision from the political class was expected. Those who brought the country to its knees will not accept any accountability. They cannot risk any sort of investigation whatsoever.

Chibli Mallat, a law professor and lawyer who won a case against Ariel Sharon in the Belgian courts over the latter’s role in the Sabra and Shatila massacre, told me that, although nothing can now be done in legal terms, it should be a wake-up call for the Lebanese. They need to realize that there is no accountability in this country anymore. This offers an opportunity to push for a president that respects the rule of law and believes in accountability. The Lebanese should demand that the next president will join the ICC. Only a president can constitutionally agree to join a treaty. This way, the trade-off whereby the interests of the country are sacrificed to cover for a few individuals will not happen again.

This is an opportunity for change MPs like Kaakour to galvanize the people. These lawmakers have been something of a disappointment to the average citizen. Expectations were high but they have brought little in the way of change. This is not totally their fault. The political configuration is iron-clad. Many members of parliament, even if they have good intentions, cannot create significant change.
However, this is an issue around which they could create important clout. This is a salient issue, through which the change movement can regain its legitimacy. It will garner internal appeal. It is also an issue around which change MPs could get endorsement from several human right organizations. They could use it to remind people that Lebanon needs accountability and, as Mallat said, push for the election of a president that respects the law and believes in accountability.