Above photo: Oren Cohen/Flash90.
Over complicity in Israeli war crimes.
The foundation is simultaneously pursuing a separate war crimes case against former Israeli PM Ehud Olmert.
The Hind Rajab Foundation’s (HRF) complaint against the European Investment Bank (EIB) for alleged complicity in Israeli war crimes has advanced to a formal assessment phase within the bank’s Complaints Mechanism (EIB-CM), Anadolu Agency reported on 4 November.
HRF said the step is not merely procedural but represents “a political and legal milestone” and “a turning point,” forcing a European institution to reckon with its role in grave breaches of international law.
The group described it as one of the first legal actions within the European Union that directly challenges the financial complicity of an EU institution in Israeli war crimes.
Filed on 20 June, the complaint called on the EIB-CM to immediately suspend and investigate over $1.1 billion in financial cooperation with Israeli entities blacklisted by the UN for their involvement in illegal settlements.
These include Bank Leumi, Electra, and other firms named in the UN’s 2020 database for facilitating and profiting from Israel’s settlement enterprise in the occupied Palestinian territories.
“This development,” HRF said, “breaks new ground in holding third-party enablers – not just Israel – accountable under international law.”
The EIB must now examine whether its financial ties with the blacklisted companies breach its own standards, EU law, or international obligations.
Meanwhile, HRF has also filed a criminal complaint in Germany accusing former Israeli prime minister Ehud Olmert of war crimes over Israel’s 2008–2009 military campaign in the Gaza Strip, known as “Operation Cast Lead.”
German lawyer Melanie Schweizer submitted the case to the Berlin Public Prosecutor’s Office and the Federal Prosecutor General in Karlsruhe, which handles international crimes under Germany’s Code of Crimes against International Law (VStGB), according to an HRF statement.
The complaint calls on German prosecutors to launch an investigation, issue an arrest warrant, and prevent Olmert from leaving Germany, as he is scheduled to attend the Haaretz Democracy Conference in Berlin on 6 November.
HRF said Olmert, who served as prime minister from 2006 to 2009, held ultimate command responsibility for the Israeli army’s actions in Gaza, where more than 1,300 Palestinians, including over 300 children, were killed.
The group cited the widespread destruction of civilian infrastructure and accused Olmert of authorizing, ignoring, or failing to address actions amounting to war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Earlier investigations by the UN Fact-Finding Mission (the Goldstone Report), Amnesty International, and Human Rights Watch (HRW) documented Israel’s use of white phosphorus in populated areas and its restrictions on humanitarian access during the assault.
“Those responsible for war crimes must know that accountability has no expiration date and that the world is closing in on impunity,” said HRF General Director Dyab Abou Jahjah.
“The victims of Gaza deserve justice, no matter how much time has passed.”
Under German law, courts may prosecute serious international crimes regardless of where they occurred or the nationality of the suspect.
