Hind Rajab Foundation Files UK War Crimes Claim Against Israeli Reservist

The Hind Rajab Foundation filed a criminal complaint in the United Kingdom against Lidor Dafna, an Israeli reservist currently believed to be in the country. The filing accuses Dafna of war crimes related to the destruction of a flour-producing facility in Gaza.

Dafna served in the 603rd Combat Engineering Battalion. The complaint states he took part in the May 2025 demolition of wheat silos in southern Gaza. At that time, an Israeli blockade of Gaza was causing widespread starvation among the civilian population.

The foundation relies on footage Dafna posted to social media. The videos show an Israeli military bulldozer tearing down the silos. Natacha Bracq, the foundation’s head of litigation, stated that the filing is urgent because authorities may allow Dafna to depart the country.

"If the authorities let him leave, he will go back and commit more crimes," Bracq said. The Metropolitan Police have not yet responded to requests for comment regarding the complaint.

The organization is named after Hind Rajab, a five-year-old girl killed in January 2024 when Israeli forces fired on her family’s vehicle in Gaza City. Her grandmother and namesake, Hind Rajab, spoke from Gaza about the complaint. She stated that families are not interested in Israel's internal investigations.

"They just justify their positions to the world," the elder Rajab said. She added that she does not think anything actually happens on the ground as a result of these inquiries.

The foundation builds cases using digital material published by Israeli soldiers. Bracq noted that soldiers have posted tens of thousands of photos and videos from Gaza and Lebanon on TikTok, Instagram, X, and Telegram. These posts often display the faces and names of the servicemembers. Investigators follow the Berkeley Protocol on Digital Open Source Investigations to verify and preserve this data.

Khaled al-Shouli, an international lawyer representing Palestinian victims before the International Criminal Court, said such material can serve as valuable evidence. However, he cautioned that the material must be tested for source, time, and place. He noted that a soldier's appearance at a location does not alone prove that person committed a crime.

Previous complaints by the group have led to action in other countries. In Belgium, federal police detained and questioned two Israeli soldiers before releasing them. The federal prosecutor subsequently referred that case to the International Criminal Court. In Canada, former combat soldier Guy Hochman was held at Toronto Pearson Airport for six hours following a complaint accusing him of war crimes and incitement to genocide. Hochman later said his Canadian visa had been revoked.

The approach faced limits in Brazil in January 2025. Authorities ordered the arrest and investigation of an Israeli soldier accused of planting explosives and demolishing civilian neighborhoods in Gaza. The soldier left the country with help from Israeli authorities before he could be detained. Al-Shouli said the case showed the gap between opening an investigation and securing a suspect's attendance. Bracq acknowledged that political will determines whether a warrant is executed, but noted that international crimes carry no statute of limitations.

The foundation is also targeting companies that supply weapons to Israel. It recently filed a criminal complaint in Poland against a state-owned TNT producer. Bracq stated that universal jurisdiction is the group's instrument, not its objective. "Our objective is justice and accountability," she said.