December 9, 2025
A Talk with Gabor Rona, Professor of Law, Cardozo Law School
This talk will describe how international law has attempted to codify accountability for mass atrocities and genocide, specifically in relation to the Israel-Palestine conflict. Prof. Rona will discuss the 1948 Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (adopted in the shadow of the Holocaust), focusing on its key legal elements: prohibited acts and the requirement of specific intent to destroy a protected group in whole or in part. The talk will then discuss how the law of genocide applies to both the Hamas October 7, 2023 attacks, and to Israel's ensuing military campaign, outlining the scale of civilian harm, displacement, and destruction in Gaza. Ultimately, Prof. Rona's talk will look at the enduring power vs. the political limits of international law’s response to mass violence, and raise a pointed question: can the post-Holocaust legal order that was designed to ensure “never again” meaningfully constrain conduct in the contemporary world?
Further information
- Location: ATS-B
- Time: 6:00 pm - 7:00 pm
- Cost: Free