Hind Rajab Foundation

The Hind Rajab Foundation (HRF) is a Belgium-based Palestinian human-rights organization established in 2024 and headquartered in Brussels. It functions as the legal arm of the March 30 Movement, a nonprofit initiative whose name refers to Land Day, the Palestinian day of commemoration observed on March 30. The foundation is named after Hind Rajab, a five-year-old Palestinian girl from Gaza who was killed during the Israeli military operation in the Gaza Strip after the deaths of members of her family and two paramedics who were attempting to reach her. The organization presents her case as a symbol of civilian suffering and the need for legal accountability. HRF's stated focus is the investigation and prosecution of alleged war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide relating to Israel's military campaign in Gaza. Its work is principally legal rather than commercial: it collects names and publicly available evidence concerning Israeli military personnel and political officials, prepares complaints, and refers cases to domestic prosecutors, police authorities, the International Criminal Court, and other international mechanisms. The foundation argues that states exercising universal jurisdiction should investigate or detain alleged perpetrators who enter their territory, subject to applicable national and international law. The organization is led by Dyab Abou Jahjah and Karim Hassoun, Belgian-Lebanese political activists associated with the Arab European League. HRF has also worked with lawyers and partner organizations in different jurisdictions. Its reported activities have extended across Europe, Latin America, Asia, Australia, and Canada. The foundation has said that it identified and submitted information concerning approximately 1,000 Israeli soldiers to the International Criminal Court by March 2025, although the precise legal status and evidentiary treatment of individual submissions varies by jurisdiction. Among its most prominent actions was a complaint submitted to the International Criminal Court in October 2024 concerning Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, then-Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, and personnel associated with the 749 Combat Engineering Battalion. HRF later pursued complaints against individual soldiers or commanders in countries including Argentina, Belgium, Brazil, Chile, Cyprus, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Peru, Portugal, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sweden, Thailand, and the United Kingdom. These filings have alleged conduct such as attacks on civilian infrastructure, forced displacement, mistreatment of detainees, attacks on medical facilities, the use of civilian locations for military purposes, and the destruction of homes and neighborhoods. Allegations are not equivalent to judicial findings, and the outcomes have differed: some complaints prompted inquiries or questioning, some suspects reportedly left the relevant country, and at least one reported German complaint did not result in an investigation. The foundation has also intervened in political and public controversies. It supported calls to investigate or restrict visits by Israeli officials and public figures, filed complaints concerning alleged incitement and violence connected with football supporters in Amsterdam, and pursued a UK complaint concerning the seizure of the aid vessel Handala. Its advocacy has drawn strong criticism from Israeli officials and supporters, while some international legal and human-rights figures have expressed support for the principle of accountability. The organization remains active, but its institutional scale, funding, membership, and long-term organizational structure are not fully documented in the supplied sources.

The Hind Rajab Foundation emerged in 2024 as the legal arm of the March 30 Movement, a Brussels-based nonprofit associated with Palestinian advocacy. It took its name from Hind Rajab, a Palestinian child from Gaza whose death, together with the deaths of relatives and paramedics attempting to rescue her, became emblematic of the civilian cost of the Gaza war. The foundation's creation reflected a strategy of combining public documentation, international advocacy, and litigation under domestic universal-jurisdiction laws. HRF's leadership includes Dyab Abou Jahjah and Karim Hassoun, both Belgian-Lebanese activists with links to the Arab European League. From its early activity, the organization concentrated on identifying Israeli soldiers, commanders, and political officials who might travel outside Israel and preparing complaints for authorities in the countries they visited. It also submitted material to the International Criminal Court. In October 2024, the foundation reported an ICC complaint involving Benjamin Netanyahu, Yoav Gallant, and personnel from an Israeli engineering battalion. The allegations concerned potential responsibility for war crimes in Gaza; they remain allegations rather than established judicial findings. During late 2024 and 2025, HRF broadened its geographic reach. It filed or supported complaints in Belgium, Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Peru, Spain, Sweden, Sri Lanka, Thailand, the United Kingdom, Cyprus, Portugal, Australia, and other jurisdictions. The cases varied in subject and legal outcome. Some concerned alleged attacks on homes, schools, hospitals, and other civilian infrastructure; others alleged forced displacement, mistreatment of detainees, use of civilian sites for military purposes, incitement, or the use of starvation as a method of warfare. In several cases, local authorities reportedly questioned suspects or opened preliminary inquiries. In other cases, authorities did not open an investigation, requests were rejected, or suspects departed before detention could occur. The foundation also used legal complaints as part of a wider political campaign. It sought action against Israeli officials visiting European countries, objected to the planned Australian visit of President Isaac Herzog, and complained about alleged genocidal chants, property damage, and assaults associated with Maccabi Tel Aviv supporters in Amsterdam. These interventions positioned HRF as an activist legal network rather than a conventional research institute or humanitarian service provider. HRF's work generated political controversy. Israeli officials and supporters criticized the organization and its leaders, while Abou Jahjah reported receiving a threatening social-media message from Amichai Chikli. Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid criticized the Israeli government's handling of the Brazil case involving an Israeli soldier, arguing that the episode exposed inadequate legal and diplomatic preparation for soldiers traveling abroad. Some international advocates supported the use of universal jurisdiction and accountability mechanisms, while the legal sufficiency of individual complaints remains dependent on the evidence, jurisdiction, and prosecutorial decisions in each case. By 2025, HRF had presented itself as an international legal-action platform pursuing accountability across multiple national systems and before the ICC. Public information supplied for this dossier does not establish its complete funding model, staffing structure, membership, or the final disposition of most cases.

• 2025

  Reported submission of information on approximately 1,000 soldiers

  [1]Hind Rajab Foundationen.wikipedia.org

  HRF stated that it had identified and submitted the names of approximately 1,000 Israeli soldiers to the ICC.

• 2024

  Foundation established

  [1]Hind Rajab Foundationen.wikipedia.org

  The Hind Rajab Foundation was established in Belgium as the legal arm of the March 30 Movement.

• 2024

  Initial ICC complaint

  [1]Hind Rajab Foundationen.wikipedia.org

  HRF reported filing an International Criminal Court complaint concerning senior Israeli officials and personnel associated with an engineering battalion.

• 2024

  Complaints expand across national jurisdictions

  [1]Hind Rajab Foundationen.wikipedia.org

  The organization filed or supported complaints in multiple countries, invoking domestic accountability procedures and universal-jurisdiction principles.

A legal-advocacy and documentation organization focused on accountability for alleged Israeli violations of international humanitarian and criminal law in Palestine, especially Gaza.

• Legal advocacy · 2024

  Legal complaints

  Formal submissions to domestic prosecutors, police authorities, the International Criminal Court, and other legal bodies alleging war crimes, crimes against humanity, genocide, or related offenses. The complaints may concern individuals, military units, political officials, or conduct documented through public material and witness accounts.

• Human-rights documentation · 2024

  War-crimes documentation

  Collection and organization of names, social-media material, eyewitness testimony, journalist reporting, and other records that HRF says can support investigations of alleged violations in Gaza and elsewhere in Palestine.

• International legal advocacy · 2024

  Universal-jurisdiction advocacy

  Public and legal campaigning urging national authorities to investigate or detain alleged perpetrators who enter their territory, relying on applicable domestic statutes and international obligations concerning serious international crimes.

• 2025

  Political threat directed at foundation leader

  Amichai Chikli posted a threatening message directed at Dyab Abou Jahjah after HRF action involving an Israeli soldier in Brazil. The wording was reported as possibly alluding to the 2024 Lebanon electronic-device attacks.

  Source

• 2025

  Controversy over international arrest complaints

  HRF's repeated complaints against Israeli soldiers and officials attracted criticism from Israeli officials and supporters, while the foundation defended them as necessary accountability measures. The allegations and complaints should not be treated as convictions.

  Source

Read more

• 2025Campaign against official visits and suspected perpetrators abroad

  Australia · Belgium · Italy · United Kingdom

  The foundation sought investigations, arrest warrants, or restrictions concerning Israeli officials and military personnel traveling abroad, including requests involving Isaac Herzog, Amichai Chikli, Gideon Sa'ar, and Ghassan Alian.

  Outcome. Reported outcomes included a cancelled Brussels visit, rejection of a UK warrant request, and continuing public disputes over the legal basis for action.

  Source
• 2024International accountability campaign for Gaza

  International · Belgium · Europe · Latin America · Asia

  HRF's central campaign seeks criminal accountability for alleged Israeli war crimes and other international crimes connected with the Gaza war. It combines evidence collection, ICC submissions, national complaints, and public pressure on authorities to use universal jurisdiction.

  Outcome. The campaign produced complaints and reported inquiries or questioning in several countries, but the final judicial outcomes of most cases were not established in the supplied material.

  Source
• 2024Amsterdam supporter-conduct complaints

  Netherlands

  After violence and disorder in Amsterdam, HRF filed complaints concerning alleged genocidal chants, incitement, vandalism, and attacks involving Maccabi Tel Aviv supporters.

  Outcome. The supplied material does not specify the final prosecutorial outcome.

  Source

• 2025

  Expand from institutional complaints to travel-triggered interventionsStrategy

  Background

  The organization identified alleged perpetrators and officials while they were traveling or scheduled to travel outside Israel.

  Action taken

  HRF filed or promoted complaints in countries including Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Chile, Cyprus, Italy, Portugal, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sweden, Thailand, and the United Kingdom.

  Aftermath

  Some individuals reportedly left countries where complaints were filed, while other requests led to questioning, investigations, cancellation of visits, or rejection by authorities.

  Source

• 2024

  Adopt cross-border legal action as the core strategyStrategy

  Background

  The foundation was formed amid the Gaza war and positioned itself as the legal arm of a Palestinian advocacy movement.

  Action taken

  It pursued ICC submissions, domestic criminal complaints, evidence collection, and universal-jurisdiction advocacy in multiple countries.

  Aftermath

  The strategy gave HRF an international profile and generated inquiries, questioning, political disputes, and criticism, although most final case outcomes remain unclear.

  Source

1. 1Hind Rajab Foundationen.wikipedia.org
2. 2Hind Rajab Foundation official websitehindrajabfoundation.org