Israel would probably be on solid legal ground to target every Toyota pickup in Gaza - even while being driven ~ Elder Of Ziyon

Tuesday, March 25, 2025

Israel would probably be on solid legal ground to target every Toyota pickup in Gaza - even while being driven

The Israel Defense Forces on Monday said that more than 100 pickup trucks used by Hamas had been attacked in the Gaza Strip.

These white pickup trucks were observed to have been used in the October 7 attack on Israel, with the terrorist group continuing to use them to this day.

Earlier, a Gazan journalist affiliated with Hamas, Hamza al-Masri, warned Palestinians against using Toyota pickup trucks, saying that "every Toyota pickup is being targeted by Israel. Stay away from such vehicles."

It appears that this was an attack on the vehicles themselves, not the drivers. That is obviously legal - Hamas uses them for military purposes.

I believe that even if Israel had targeted every Toyota pickup truck on the road, while being driven and killing the driver and passengers, it would still be legal under the laws of armed conflict.

It can safely be assumed that the white Toyota pickups are used almost exclusively by Hamas in Gaza. Civilians would be unlikely to afford such a truck, and everyone in Gaza knows that they are distinctive and used by the terrorists. If a Gazan wanted a pickup truck for innocent purposes, they would not choose white.

Attacking the trucks on the road is like attacking Hezbollah pagers in Lebanon. The odds that the driver and passengers are terrorists are very high, and the chances that innocent civilians would be killed as well (assuming Israel is following its own targeting rules of only attacking vehicles when they are not near innocents) are much lower than from bombing a building with a known senior terrorist, probably with his family. (And which is still legal.)

As it is, Israel does not appear to target vehicles without knowing exactly who and what is inside, and not when they are near civilians. My point is that Israel goes above and beyond the laws of war. If they would devise an AI drone that automatically shoots every white Toyota pickup it sees (and they won't) , it would still be legal under the principle of distinction between civilian and military targets.

A combatant wearing a uniform is a valid military target. Hamas terrorists take off their uniforms. The white trucks fulfill the same function in identifying them. The white pickup is as distinctive a "uniform" as Hamas ever uses.

(If the trucks entered Gaza through Israel, I certainly hope that they are outfitted with lots of electronic surveillance systems. And for all we know, perhaps they were and Hamas discovered them - maybe that is why the IDF decided to get rid of them now.)