The human suffering caused by the political ideology of apartheid in South Africa during the Apartheid era (1948–1994) prompted worldwide condemnation and a variety of diplomatic and legal responses. Amongst these responses was the attempt to have apartheid recognised both as a crime against humanity in the 1973 Apartheid Convention as well as a war crime in Article 85(4) (c) of Additional Protocol I. This article examin'es the origins, nature and current status of the practices of apartheid as a war crime and its possible application to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.