A recent judgment of the Israeli Supreme Court in the case of HCJ 10265/05 Physicians for Human Rights v Defense Minister (judgment of 7 October 2008) reexamines a number of questions concerning not only the status of the Gaza Strip and Israel’s obligations towards the local population. Equally, the Court’s reluctance to address the violations of IHL and human rights law of the Israeli military powers in the Gaza or West Bank, and the practice of ‘putting out fires’ whilst assuring that the matter would be resolved without needing to enforce the state’s gross violations of its international legal obligations.…