Rom Kovtun’s personal social media posts reveal he was holidaying within the nation, opening the door to ‘common jurisdiction’ authorized jeopardy.
Printed On 18 Feb 2026
A Chilean courtroom is contemplating a felony criticism in opposition to a former Israeli military sniper who served in Gaza throughout Israel’s greater than two-year-long genocide on the coastal enclave and the Palestinian folks.
Rom Kovtun’s personal social media posts revealed he was holidaying within the nation, opening the door to what authorized consultants name “common jurisdiction”. Kovtun, an Israeli-Ukrainian, served as a sniper in Israel’s 424th Shaked Battalion in Gaza.
Really useful Tales
listing of 4 objectsfinish of listing
Al Jazeera’s Lucia Newman, reporting from Santiago, mentioned photographs posted on-line present Kovtun swimming in a lake in south-central Chile with different former Israeli troopers.
“His knack for posting leisure and wartime escapades on Instagram is what allowed the Hind Rajab Basis (HRF) to file a felony criticism in Chile, accusing him of battle crimes, genocide and crimes in opposition to humanity,” she added.
The Belgium-based HRF is known as after a five-year-old Palestinian lady killed in Gaza in January 2024, and whose case drew world consideration to the plight of Palestinians in Gaza.
The HRF has assembled a worldwide group of legal professionals and activists to construct authorized circumstances, drawing primarily on social media posts revealed by Israeli troopers themselves.
Common jurisdiction
Chile’s home legislation incorporates the Worldwide Felony Courtroom’s (ICC) Rome Statute, enabling courts to train common jurisdiction in sure circumstances, Pablo Andres Araya, a lawyer with HRF, mentioned.
“This is applicable when it’s clear that the particular person accused of those crimes won’t be tried in his or her nation of origin,” Araya informed Al Jazeera.
“And there’s no query that troopers who’ve dedicated atrocities in Gaza won’t be tried by [Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu.”
Al Jazeera’s Newman reported that Kovtun laid siege to the enclave’s largest hospital, al-Shifa, between March and April 2024, allegedly taking part in a key position within the mass dying of civilians and destruction that ensued.
The siege denied water, meals, drugs and electrical energy to all these inside, resulting in the dying of an estimated 500 docs, nurses and sufferers, together with new child infants.
‘Not welcome’
“Chile is a favorite vacation vacation spot for Israeli troopers who’ve accomplished their army service,” Newman mentioned. “However they’re not as welcome.”
The South American nation is residence to the biggest Palestinian diaspora outdoors of the Center East, and Chileans typically are seen as sympathetic to the Palestinian trigger.
Nonetheless, Newman famous that none of it might have “any bearing on the case”.
“It’s a purely authorized, complicated judicial concern that would take time, sufficient time to permit the previous Israeli sniper to be lengthy gone,” Newman added.
