Opinion: Why Israel deserves to be singled out for criticism

In a column last month, Washington Post associate editor Ruth Marcus criticised the International Court of Justice's (ICJ) finding that it is "plausible" that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza.

She asserted that "somehow Israel seems always to be held to a different, higher standard than other countries. The ICJ's ruling is the latest manifestation of this familiar double standard, from an entity from which we should be able to expect better".

The ICJ's finding doesn't stem from holding Israel to "a different, higher standard". Haaretz reported that, during the first three weeks of Israel's offensive in Gaza, 61 percent of those Israel killed were noncombatants, whereas author Yagil Levy points out, "in wars fought during the 20th century, up until the 1990s, about half of those killed were civilians."

Similarly, The New York Times reported that "experts say that even a conservative reading of the casualty figures reported from Gaza shows that the pace of death during Israel's campaign has few precedents in this century".

READ MORE: Why Israel deserves to be singled out for criticism, opinion by Gregory Shupak