[mschuster91]

> Only those who have the "continuous function" to "directly participate in hostilities"[1] may be targeted for attack at any time.

The problem with Hamas is that they don't shy away from hiding combattants in civilian clothings or use women and children as suicide bombers. There is more than enough evidence of this tactic, dating back many many years [1].

By not just not preventing, but actively ordering such war crimes, Hamas leadership has stripped its civilian population of the protections of international law.

> Otherwise, the allowed list of targets of civilians gets so wide than in any regular war, pretty much any civilian could get targeted, such as the bank employee whose company has provided loans to the armed forces.

In regular wars, it's uniformed soldiers against uniformed soldiers, away from civilian infrastructure (hospitals, schools, residential areas). The rules of war make deviating from that a war crime on its own, simply because it places the other party in the conflict of either having no chance to wage the war or to commit war crimes on their own.

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Use_of_child_suicide_bombers_b...

[colordrops]

> Hamas leadership has stripped its civilian population of the protections of international law.

You completely lose any credibility with this statement. Civilians can't be "stripped" of protections of international law.

[mschuster91]

Oh yes they can, that question has been settled in the aftermath of the Yugoslavian Wars [1, page 148]:

> 46. The law is thus clear: a hospital becomes a legitimate target when used for hostile or harmful acts unrelated to its humanitarian function, but the opposing party must give warning before it attacks

[1] https://www.icty.org/x/cases/galic/acjug/en/gal-acjud061130....

[Quanttek]

That has nothing to do with your original statement. Yes, hospital can lose their special protection but must then be given a warning that gives them enough time to evacuate and only if that warning is unheeded, it loses special protection. But all the other rules protecting civilians still apply (distinction, proportionality, precautions, …). In any case, this has nothing to do with the whole civilian population being stripped of their protections. They still have their human rights and cannot be targeted.

[colordrops]

So pretty much every hospital, school, and over 60% (nearly 300,000) residences have been destroyed in Gaza, leaving well over a million displaced. You are a genocide supporter.

[Thiez]

An entire civilian population cannot be stripped of its protections of international law. This type of dehumanising rhetoric is the exact filth that leads to genocide and other atrocities (as we can see happening live in recent months).