The Hague Group: a new front in the global struggle for justice
The HRF Delegation to the March 2026 Hague Group meeting from left to write, HRF U.S. representative Jake Romm, General Director Dyab Abou Jahjah, Director of Operations Karim Hassoun
The Hind Rajab Foundation reports on 4 March 2026:
The Hind Rajab Foundation (HRF) participated in the recent meeting of the Hague Group in The Hague, where representatives of 42 states gathered to discuss concrete measures to address the ongoing atrocities in Palestine and to advance accountability under international law. HRF was represented by a delegation led by our founder, Dyab Abou Jahjah, who addressed the session of states and called for immediate legal action against perpetrators of international crimes.
In his intervention, Abou Jahjah reminded participating states that the legal framework necessary to pursue accountability already exists and imposes clear obligations.
“ Every state here has the domestic legal tools as well as the international legal obligation—stemming from Article 146 of the Fourth Geneva Convention, the Genocide Convention, the Convention Against Torture, and numerous ICJ rulings—to exercise universal jurisdiction and to prosecute these soldiers while they are within your territory.”
This statement underscores a central reality often obscured in political debates: the issue is not the absence of law but the absence of enforcement. International law already mandates that states prosecute grave breaches of humanitarian law when suspects are present within their jurisdiction. Universal jurisdiction exists precisely to prevent war criminals from escaping justice by crossing borders.
The Hind Rajab Foundation has been actively utilizing this legal principle by submitting requests for prosecution against Israeli soldiers suspected of involvement in crimes committed in Gaza when they travel abroad. Such cases require rapid action from national authorities, as suspects often attempt to leave jurisdictions quickly once legal complaints are filed. In several instances, Israeli authorities have even facilitated the removal of suspects from foreign countries to shield them from investigation.