1. Military action can be taken only against military targets.
2. The use of force must be proportional.
3. Soldiers may only use weaponry they were issued by the IDF.
4. Anyone who surrenders cannot be attacked.
5. Only those who are properly trained can interrogate prisoners.
6. Soldiers must accord dignity and respect to the Palestinian population and those arrested.
7. Soldiers must give appropriate medical care, when conditions allow, to themselves and to enemies.
8. Pillaging is absolutely and totally illegal.
9. Soldiers must show proper respect for religious and cultural sites and artifacts.
10. Soldiers must protect international aid workers, including their property and vehicles.
11. Soldiers must report all violations of this code.

All 11 Codes of Military Conduct (with the exception only of No.8) were apparently deliberately violated by the Israeli forces in December 2008 and January 2009 in their attack against the civilian population of Gaza.

Yet no action is known to have been taken against the men and commanders responsible for the reported violations that resulted in the alleged killings of 320 children and 112 women that were committed over the six week attack.

If the Israeli government and its military commanders cannot control the actions of their forces, then not only are the Palestinians (and the Lebanese) at further risk of death and destruction but also all of Israel’s neighbours and the wider world.