The Israel-Lebanon framework agreement signed in Washington on June 26, 2026, threatens to betray war crimes victims in Lebanon, Amnesty International and five human rights and press freedom organizations said today. Parts of the text appear to be aimed at preventing victims of serious international crimes from seeking justice before international forums. Others seem to acquiesce to the prolonged and indefinite forced displacement of tens of thousands of residents of vast swathes of southern Lebanon occupied by Israeli forces.<\/p>\n
The agreement comes following months of hostilities resulting in immense civilian harm, including as a result of war crimes, violations of international humanitarian law, and gross human rights abuses. Yet, Clause 13 of the agreement commits the governments of Israel and Lebanon to the cessation of \u201call hostile or adverse actions in international political or legal fora.\u201d<\/p>\n
To the extent that this agreement is interpreted to prevent Lebanon and Israel from having recourse to international courts, including the International Criminal Court and the International Court of Justice, it would contradict the countries\u2019 international legal obligations to pursue accountability for serious international crimes committed on their territories. The agreement does not appear to commit Israel to halt any initiatives in international forums against Hezbollah.<\/p>\n
Clause 3 further violates international law and the prohibition of forced displacement, conditioning the return of residents to specified zones along the border, currently occupied by Israel, to the \u201csuccessful disarmament of non-state armed groups and dismantlement of their infrastructure.\u201d Under international humanitarian law, people must be allowed to return once hostilities have ended or the reasons for their displacement cease to exist.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cTime and time again, we have seen civilians in Lebanon pay the price for successive cycles of conflict and serious violations and crimes under international law with no accountability,\u201d said Agn\u00e8s Callamard, Secretary General of Amnesty International. \u201cVictims of war crimes and other violations deserve justice. Any agreement that fails to center their rights to justice, accountability and reparations will falter underneath the very impunity it builds. The past few years have made it abundantly clear \u2013 rampant impunity comes at a cost to us all. States that claim to uphold the international legal order must speak out: justice, reparation and respect for international law in Lebanon and beyond are non-negotiable.\u201d<\/p>\n
Since 2023, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, Legal Agenda, the Lebanese Center for Human Rights (CLDH), the Union of Journalists in Lebanon and other rights groups have documented the Israeli military\u2019s repeated violations of the laws of war and apparent war crimes in Lebanon. They include apparent direct attacks on civilian objects and civilians, indiscriminate attacks and other unlawful attacks that have killed medical personnel, journalists, and entire families; and the unlawful use of white phosphorus, which causes horrific burns, over residential areas.<\/p>\n
Victims of war crimes and other violations deserve justice. Any agreement that fails to center their rights to justice, accountability and reparations will falter underneath the very impunity it builds.<\/p>\n
Agn\u00e8s Callamard, Amnesty International<\/p>\n
Amnesty International found in a recent report<\/a> that the Israeli military has forcibly displaced tens of thousands of Lebanese civilians, committing the war crime of unlawful transfer, while continuing the extensive destruction<\/a> of civilian property and infrastructure it began in 2024 across southern Lebanon. Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have also documented Hezbollah\u2019s firing of unguided rockets at northern Israel, which have unlawfully killed and injured civilians.\u00a0<\/p>\n Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, Reporters Without Borders, Legal Agenda, CLDH, the Union of Journalists in Lebanon, and other Lebanese and international rights and media groups, have repeatedly called for investigations into, accountability and reparation for international law violations committed during the ongoing hostilities. In a February 2026 open letter<\/a> to Lebanon\u2019s deputy prime minister and justice minister, the groups highlighted\u00a0the urgent need for decisive action from Lebanon\u2019s government to ensure justice, accountability and reparations for victims of serious violations of international humanitarian law committed in Lebanon, including seeking accountability at international legal forums.<\/p>\n \u201cIt is imperative that Lebanon promptly provides the ICC with the jurisdiction to investigate and prosecute such crimes,\u201d said Wadih Al Asmar, President of CLDH. \u201cAny delay amounts to tolerance of impunity and further injustice for victims.\u201d<\/p>\n The groups called on the authorities to accede to the International Criminal Court\u2019s Rome Statute and file a declaration with the ICC, accepting the court\u2019s jurisdiction under article 12(3) of the Rome Statute, to investigate and prosecute crimes under international law committed on Lebanese territory since at least October 7, 2023, and support the establishment of prompt, thorough, independent, and impartial domestic judicial investigations into war crimes committed on Lebanese territory. Lebanon\u2019s parliament should put into place a legal framework for these efforts by adopting, without delay, a law criminalizing war crimes and other acts that are crimes under international law, in line with international standards.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n In March, hostilities escalated again, as did serious international law violations. A UN Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights\u2019 (OHCHR) assessment team is already deployed in Lebanon, documenting violations of international humanitarian law and human rights violations and abuses committed since March 2, at the request of Lebanese authorities.<\/p>\n Under OHCHR\u2019s terms of reference, to which Lebanese authorities agreed, the UN team would \u201cexamine options for accountability that may be available\u201d and \u201csafely document, preserve and secure all information collected together, with a view to enhancing its use in future accountability processes.\u201d<\/p>\n Victims of serious international law violations, as well as their family members and loved ones, have demanded justice.<\/p>\n \u201cNot only does this agreement risk further entrenching impunity, but it includes a clause that signals that political expediency outweighs the fundamental rights of those who have suffered atrocious violations,\u201d said Lama Fakih, Program Director at Human Rights Watch. \u201cIt risks denying justice to victims at a time when mounting evidence points to repeated unlawful Israeli attacks causing extensive civilian harm and widespread destruction.\u201d<\/p>\n Since October 8, 2023, more than 8,700 people, including at least 569 children and 357 medical workers, have been killed in Lebanon, according to Lebanon\u2019s Health Ministry. Israeli forces have also repeatedly targeted and killed identifiable journalists covering the war, according to Reporters Without Borders (RSF). Hezbollah attacks have killed at least 32 civilians in Israel according to Israeli media.<\/p>\n