The Global Future of Civilian Protection: Learning from the Gaza Genocide
The significant failure to protect civilians in the most recent conflict in Gaza (2023 onwards) and what has been labeled the ‘rupture’ of the rules-based international order and demands a critical assessment of the future of protection of civilians, as a legal and institutional commitment. This discussion has increased in urgency following the US-Israel war in Iran, involving the same actors deploying the ‘Gaza playbook’ vis-a-vis protecting civilians.
Protection of Civilians while anchored in international humanitarian law, encompasses all activities aimed at obtaining full respect for the rights of the individual in accordance with relevant bodies of law (i.e. International Human Rights Law, International Humanitarian Law, International Refugee law). It is applied in situations of conflict to keep civilians from harm, as well as notions of military honour and other ethics.
Protection of civilians in a conflict can be actioned through multiple measures, including, conflict prevention, civilian/community-based self-protection, restraint measures in military operations, international and domestic justice processes, ensuring physical safety of civilians and ensuring access to adequate humanitarian assistance.
This roundtable discussion brings together a diverse group of scholars and practitioners to speak to the future of civilian protection based on the lessons from Gaza. They will bring a diversity of perspectives including international law; international peace and security; principled humanitarian action; civil society engagement in political and public spaces (protests, boycotts, legislative initiatives, etc.) and civilian self-protection, based on their academic and/or practice expertise and their lived experience. Work around protection of civilians occurs within affected communities, by armed forces, in national parliaments, in courts of law, through media investigations and at institutions such as, the United Nations.
This event is presented in collaboration with the Centre for Refugee Studies and the Dahdaleh Institute for Global Health Research, York University.
Register to attend here: http://go.yorku.ca/8april2026
This event serves as Part 3 of our seminar series on “The limits and Responsibilities of Global Health and Humanitarianism: What the genocide in Gaza reveals”:
