French Judges Launch War Crimes Probe into Israeli Strikes in Lebanon, Targeting High-Level Officials

A significant legal development has emerged as French judges initiate a war crimes investigation into an Israeli strike that killed the parents of Ali Cherri in 2024. Mr. Cherri, who holds dual French-Lebanese nationality, filed a complaint with the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), prompting the crimes against humanity unit of the Paris Judicial Court to appoint two investigating judges.

"I'm doing this to seek justice for my parents. And we, as victims, still believe in justice. It's the only path we have left," Mr. Cherri stated to The National. His lawyer, Clémence Bectarte, highlighted this as the first publicly known investigation abroad into alleged Israeli war crimes in Lebanon. The investigation aims to identify individuals, including political and military officials, bearing the highest responsibility for the bombing.

Ms. Bectarte noted that France's precedent-setting investigations into atrocities committed by Bashar Al Assad’s regime during the Syrian civil war, which led to arrest warrants for Mr. Al Assad and other senior officials, establish a similar path for this case. The same unit that issued warrants in the Syrian cases, including against Mr. Al Assad, is now handling Mr. Cherri's investigation, suggesting the possibility of similar actions targeting Israeli officials.

Mr. Cherri's parents, aged 87 and 77, were killed in an Israeli strike on a 12-storey apartment building in central Beirut on November 26, 2024. The attack, which occurred just before a ceasefire between Hezbollah and Israel was to take effect, also killed five other civilians, according to an Amnesty International investigation. This strike followed escalating clashes between Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah, an ally of Hamas, which began after Hamas's October 7 attacks.

Amnesty International's investigation into the strike found no evidence of a military objective and indicated that no effective advance warning was given to civilians. Sahar Mandour, Amnesty International's researcher on Lebanon, described the incident as part of a pattern of indiscriminate attacks or direct attacks on civilians and civilian objects. The investigation into the strike that killed Mr. Cherri's parents revealed that at least seven civilians, all residents of the building, perished.

The French judiciary's jurisdiction in this case stems from Mr. Cherri's dual nationality. For Lebanese citizens without a second nationality, seeking accountability domestically is extremely difficult, as Lebanon is not a party to the Rome Statute, which established the International Criminal Court (ICC). Furthermore, a framework agreement with Israel requires the suspension of legal proceedings during negotiations.

Mr. Cherri expressed hope that this case would offer a form of collective justice for Lebanese victims who lack the possibility of filing complaints. The article also mentions other pending legal complaints, including one filed by a French-Lebanese man whose family members were killed in Israeli strikes on Tyre, and another concerning the uprooting of olive trees in southern Lebanon.

Ms. Mandour suggested that these legal proceedings could increase pressure on Lebanese authorities to address the accountability vacuum for grave international crimes and build momentum for a domestic judicial system capable of prosecuting war crimes. This also reinforces calls for Lebanon to accept the Rome Statute and international jurisdiction.

Mr. Cherri finds strength in his parents' memory to pursue justice for himself and other Lebanese victims, viewing it as a poetic guidance and support.