Yes, I think it's tricky, but the difficulty of the situation does not allow exceptions to international law.

As US Secretary of State, Blinken, said to Netanyahu, the West is obliged to uphold the rules of war even when they are difficult to uphold, perhaps especially.

No easy answers, but it is certain that Putin and those sympathetic to him will discard the nuances at play here and use Israel's bombing of Gaza (with the backing of the West) to point out the West's selective application of international law.

The Geneva Convention was established in the aftermath of the Second World War. Its purpose was to protect civilians and noncombatants. If we can't see its utility and importance, the real question is, why does it exist in the first place?

Obviously all difficult things, thank you RC for your respectful comment! I hope you are doing well in these horrific times.