SAFA — The Hind Rajab Foundation has filed a criminal complaint with British authorities against an Israeli soldier accused of involvement in war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide during Israel's military assault on the Gaza Strip.

The foundation announced Sunday that it had asked British police and prosecutors to investigate and arrest Sgt. Lidor Dafna, an Israeli soldier who operated a D9 armored bulldozer with the 603rd Combat Engineering Battalion of the Israeli military's 7th Armored Brigade.

According to the foundation, Dafna has served in Gaza and Lebanon since November 2023 and is believed to be currently in the United Kingdom.

The complaint focuses on the destruction of a major flour production facility in southern Gaza, which the foundation says was deliberately demolished as Palestinians faced severe hunger and starvation under Israel's blockade.

Destruction of Gaza Flour Mill

The foundation said Dafna participated in the destruction of Great Ocean Mills on May 25, 2025, in the Morag Corridor, between Khan Younis and Rafah in southern Gaza.

According to its investigation, footage published on Dafna's social media accounts shows him operating a military bulldozer to demolish the facility's wheat silos.

The foundation said Israeli forces subsequently occupied the mill complex, converted it into a military base and used the site as a firing position against Palestinians attempting to reach a nearby food distribution point operated by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation.

The destruction occurred amid severe Israeli restrictions on the entry of food, fuel and medical supplies into Gaza.

At the time, the foundation said, flour prices had reached as much as $70 per kilogram, while approximately half a million Palestinians faced starvation.

The foundation argued that destroying a facility used to produce flour under such conditions raised serious concerns about the deliberate targeting of civilian infrastructure essential to the population's survival.

Israeli Battalion Linked to More Than 60 Demolitions

The Hind Rajab Foundation said its investigation also connected the 603rd Combat Engineering Battalion to more than 60 controlled demolitions during Israeli military operations to establish the Morag Corridor.

The destroyed structures included residential buildings and mosques.

According to the foundation, these operations contributed to the "widespread destruction of civilian infrastructure and agricultural land" in southern Gaza.

It said the demolitions formed part of a broader pattern of destruction affecting homes, agricultural areas and essential civilian facilities.

Based on the evidence it collected, the foundation argued that there were grounds to investigate Dafna for extensive destruction of property not justified by military necessity, intentional attacks on civilian objects, using starvation of civilians as a method of warfare, extermination as a crime against humanity and genocide.

These accusations form the basis of the criminal complaint submitted to British authorities.

Foundation Calls for Arrest Under Universal Jurisdiction

The Hind Rajab Foundation urged British authorities to exercise universal jurisdiction, a legal principle that permits states to investigate and prosecute certain grave international crimes regardless of where they occurred or the nationality of those involved.

The complaint cited Article 146 of the Fourth Geneva Convention, which requires states to search for individuals accused of committing grave breaches of the convention and bring them before their courts or hand them over to another state for prosecution under the convention's provisions.

"Lidor Dafna filmed himself destroying one of the last remaining food production facilities serving a starving population, then posted the footage on social media as a trophy," said Dyab Abou Jahjah, the foundation's director general.

"The United Kingdom now faces a simple test: will it arrest and prosecute a man, who remains an active soldier of an army carrying out such crimes, or once again permit a perpetrator of genocide to walk freely on its soil and return to Gaza to continue committing his crimes?" he added.

British police and prosecutors had not immediately commented on the complaint or indicated whether they would open a formal investigation.

Complaint Filed Amid Continued Israeli Attacks on Gaza

The complaint comes as Israeli attacks continue in the Gaza Strip despite a ceasefire that formally took effect on October 10, 2025.

According to Gaza's Ministry of Health, Israeli military attacks since the ceasefire began have killed at least 1,551 Palestinians and wounded 5,573 others.

Since October 2023, Israel's military assault on Gaza has killed more than 74,000 Palestinians and injured over 175,000, according to the ministry.

Palestinian health authorities also estimate that approximately 90% of Gaza's civilian infrastructure has been destroyed.

The Hind Rajab Foundation, named after six-year-old Palestinian girl Hind Rajab, whose killing during Israel's assault on Gaza sparked international outrage, has pursued similar criminal complaints against Israeli military personnel in several European countries, including Italy.

The latest submission seeks to bring an Israeli soldier before British authorities over the destruction of a food production facility and other acts that the foundation argues constitute serious violations of international humanitarian and criminal law.

Whether British authorities open an investigation or take further legal action remains to be seen.

Source : Safa News