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As the Gaza People’s Tribunal concluded its final session in Istanbul, it left behind a defining moral judgment—that the international community had failed to deliver justice for the Palestinian people.
Over four days of public hearings, jurists, scholars, and witnesses from across the world gathered to examine Israel’s actions in Gaza and to deliberate on questions of law, conscience, and humanity.
Among the leading voices of the tribunal was Professor Richard Falk, the former United Nations Special Rapporteur on Palestinian human rights, whose decades-long work in international law and justice had shaped much of the tribunal’s ethical foundation.
Speaking to Türkiye Today, Falk reflected on the process, the evolution from Sarajevo to Istanbul, and the persistent shortcomings of global governance.
Falk recalled that the earlier Sarajevo session had served as “a dress rehearsal for Istanbul.” It had brought together experts and witnesses, providing what he described as “an intellectual background” for the tribunal’s proceedings. That session had culminated in the Sarajevo Declaration, which set forth the moral and political framework later adopted in Istanbul.
“The Istanbul hearing,” he noted, “introduced a new and essential element—a jury of conscience, which had not participated in Sarajevo.” This jury, composed of independent figures from around the world, was entrusted with evaluating both the legal and moral dimensions of the Palestinian question.
Falk explained that the Istanbul session presented the jury with the main issues arising from recent political developments, including the limitations of ongoing diplomatic efforts, the fragility of the ceasefire, and the threat directed at Hamas—that if it did not accept the terms within 72 hours, Israel would resume what he called “an unrestrained campaign of all-out genocide.”
He emphasized that the purpose of the tribunal went beyond legality:
“The hope,” he said, “was that the jury of conscience would take seriously not only the legal and political aspects but also the moral perspective—how, at this stage, justice might be done on behalf of the Palestinian struggle to defend their rights in their own homeland.”
When asked whether the global community had already failed the Palestinian people, Falk responded with striking candor.
“Our People’s Tribunal was formed precisely because of the failure of the international system,” he said. “We would not have made this effort if the global community had not failed. It took a full year, and countless people devoted themselves to it.”
Yet he acknowledged that the failure was not absolute. Certain mechanisms, he said, had provided glimmers of integrity—among them the judgments of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) and the International Criminal Court (ICC), as well as the reports of Francesca Albanese, the U.N. Special Rapporteur on Palestine.
“His reports were illuminating,” Falk added, “she told the truth about the genocide taking place and tried to pierce through state propaganda so that the public could truly understand what was happening.”
For Falk, the Gaza Tribunal represented more than a legal exercise—it was an act of moral defiance against indifference. It reminded the world that justice, even when abandoned by institutions, could still be defended by people of conscience.
“It was about restoring the very idea that justice matters,” Falk concluded.
“Even when states fail, humanity must not. That is the legacy we hoped this tribunal would leave behind.”
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