Hind Rajab Foundation Files Genocide Incitement Complaint in Italy Against Israeli Minister Idit Silman

The Hind Rajab Foundation filed a criminal complaint in Italy on September 6 against Idit Silman, Israel's minister of environmental protection, accusing her of public incitement to commit genocide against Palestinians in Gaza.

According to a statement from the foundation, the complaint was lodged after Silman arrived in Italy that day with her husband, Shmuel Silman. HRF says the filing documents what it calls a "sustained and escalating campaign" of public statements by Silman over roughly two years.

The complaint cites remarks Silman made at a rally in Jerusalem on February 27, 2025, in which she said, according to HRF, that "the only solution for Gaza was to empty Gaza of Gazans." HRF says she repeated the line almost verbatim on Israeli radio station Reshet Bet on March 11, 2025, describing the proposal as "realistic."

HRF says these statements were directed not at Hamas fighters but at the civilian population of Gaza. The complaint also documents what the foundation describes as Silman's calls to cut off humanitarian assistance to Gaza and statements in which she denied the existence of Palestinians as a people, though the foundation's public statement does not specify dates or exact wording for those claims.

Dyab Abou Jahjah, HRF's director general, framed the complaint in terms of the legal threshold for incitement.

"Genocide does not begin with killing. It begins when a people is declared to have no right to exist, when its presence is portrayed as the problem, and when its removal is presented as the solution."

Natacha Bracq, HRF's head of litigation, said the filing puts a direct question to Italian authorities.

"The question before the Italian authorities is not whether these words are shocking. It is whether a government official who publicly advocates the elimination of a protected group can be held criminally accountable. That question demands an investigation, not impunity."

The complaint does not appear to be independently corroborated by video or transcript in HRF's public statement or in reporting on the filing; the specific quotes attributed to Silman are presented by HRF as part of the documentation submitted to Italian prosecutors. It is not yet known whether Italian authorities will open a formal investigation. Silman has not publicly responded to the complaint as of this reporting.

HRF, which describes itself as tracking individuals it accuses of participating in what it calls genocide in Gaza, has previously filed similar complaints in other European jurisdictions against Israeli soldiers and officials traveling abroad.