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'War-Crime Starvation Strategy': Israel Blocks All Humanitarian Aid into Gaza
“There will be famine and chaos”
Mar 02, 2025
Israel has reneged on the existing ceasefire agreement they had agreed to with Hamas. The first phase of the ceasefire expired Saturday and Israel announced on Sunday it is halting all humanitarian aid and fuel deliveries to Gaza and closing the border between Israel and Gaza. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday that he made the decision "in full coordination with President Trump and his people."
In a statement Hamas called the suspension of aid a “war crime” and a violation of the ceasefire agreement. It said Netanyahu’s “decision to suspend humanitarian aid is cheap blackmail, a war crime and a blatant coup against the [ceasefire] agreement”.
Stephen Zunes, the director of Middle Eastern studies at the University of San Francisco, says the US’s apparent proposal favoring Israel follows a well-established pattern seen since the beginning of the war.
“This is typical,” he told Al Jazeera. “Hamas and Israel will agree to something. Then Israel will try to revise it in its favor. Then the US will put forward a new proposal that is in Israel’s favor and then the US will blame Hamas for not accepting that proposal.”
Israel’s decision to block all aid going into the Gaza Strip is a war crime under international law, a human rights expert says.
Kenneth Roth – former head of Human Rights Watch who is now a visiting professor at Princeton University – said Israel as an occupying power has an “absolute duty” to facilitate humanitarian aid under the Geneva Conventions.
“Israel’s latest threat to cut off all aid is a resumption of the war-crime starvation strategy” that led to the arrest warrant for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu by the International Criminal Court, he said.
Doctors Without Borders said Israel's decision is “outrageous and will have devastating consequences”, said the group’s emergency coordinator Caroline Seguin.
“Humanitarian aid should never be used as a tool of war,” added the charity, known by its French acronym MSF, in a statement. “Regardless of negotiations between warring parties, people in Gaza still need an immediate and massive scale-up of humanitarian supplies.”
Jeremy Corbyn, who once led the UK Labour Party, said that Israel’s blocking of humanitarian aid was a “resumption of genocide”, before adding that the current British government – led by Labour – was “complicit."
AP reports:
Fayza Nassar, a woman living in the heavily destroyed urban Jabaliya refugee camp, said the closure would exacerbate already dire living conditions.
“There will be famine and chaos,” she said. “Closing the crossings is a heinous crime.”
Israel’s offensive has killed at least 48,388 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry. It says more than half of those killed were women and children.
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Rights Group Urges ICC to Probe Biden for 'Aiding and Abetting' Israeli Crimes in Gaza
A veteran war crimes lawyer argues that "there are solid grounds to investigate Joe Biden, Antony Blinken, and Lloyd Austin for complicity in Israel's crimes."
Feb 24, 2025
A human rights group revealed Monday that on the last full day of U.S. President Joe Biden's term, it encouraged the International Criminal Court to investigate him and two of his Cabinet members for "aiding and abetting" Israeli war crimes and crimes against humanity in the Gaza Strip.
U.S.-based Democracy for the Arab World Now (DAWN) announced that on January 19, it submitted to the ICC Prosecutor Karim Khan a 172-page communication detailing why the tribunal should probe Biden and his former secretaries of defense and state, Lloyd Austin and Anthony Blinken.
Although a fragile cease-fire took effect in Gaza last month, Israel—backed by the Biden administration and Congress—responded to the Hamas-led October 7, 2023 attack with a 15-month blockade and military assault that killed tens of thousands, possibly hundreds of thousands, of Palestinians and left the territory in ruins.
"There are solid grounds to investigate Joe Biden, Antony Blinken and Lloyd Austin for complicity in Israel's crimes," DAWN board member and veteran war crimes lawyer Reed Brody said in a Monday statement. "The bombs dropped on Palestinian hospitals, schools, and homes are American bombs, the campaign of murder and persecution has been carried out with American support. U.S. officials have been aware of exactly what Israel is doing, and yet their support never stopped."
"By investigating and prosecuting U.S. officials, the ICC can deter and discourage further international support for Israeli crimes in Gaza and demonstrate that no one is above the law."
DAWN's document lays out how the United States, under Biden, "provided unwavering direct military and political support to Israel, even after it became manifest that Israel continued to carry out severe violations of international humanitarian law and human rights." That includes at least $17.9 billion in taxpayer-funded military assistance since October 2023, a 381% increase from the around $3.8 billion a year before Hamas' attack.
"In addition to new arms transfers and sales authorizations, the U.S. used pre-existing contracts and additional emergency military aid measures to expedite the delivery of major arms," the submission continues, also noting "the deployment of U.S.-operated military intelligence and active military operations targeting groups posing threats to Israel on other fronts."
Israel—like the United States—is not a party to the Hague-based ICC, but Palestine is. The court in November issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, former Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, and Hamas leader Mohammed Diab Ibrahim Al-Masri, also known as Mohammed Deif, who is dead.
DAWN's submission makes the case that "by continuously and unconditionally providing political support and military
support to Israel while being fully aware of the specific crimes committed by Netanyahu, Gallant, and their subordinates, President Biden, Secretary Blinken, and Secretary Austin contributed intentionally to the commission of those crimes while at least knowing the intention of the group to commit the Israeli crimes, if not aiming of furthering such criminal activity."
The group's executive director, Sarah Leah Whitson, said Monday that "not only did Biden, Blinken, and Secretary Austin ignore and justify the overwhelming evidence of Israel's grotesque and deliberate crimes, overruling their own staff recommendations to halt weapons transfers to Israel, they doubled down by providing Israel with unconditional military and political support to ensure it could carry out its atrocities."
"They provided Israel with not only essential military support but equally essential political support by vetoing multiple cease-fire resolutions at the U.N. Security Council to ensure Israel could continue its crimes," Whitson highlighted. She argued that "by investigating and prosecuting U.S. officials, the ICC can deter and discourage further international support for Israeli crimes in Gaza and demonstrate that no one is above the law."
DAWN also recommended that the ICC consider looking into half a dozen other Biden officials including Jake Sullivan, national security adviser; Gina Raimondo, secretary of commerce; Bonnie Jenkins, under secretary of arms control and international security; Stanley L. Brown, acting assistant secretary for the Bureau of Political-Military Affairs; Amanda Dory, acting under secretary of defense for policy; and Mike Miller, acting director of the Defense Security Cooperation Agency.
"It is important for the international community, and Palestinians in particular, to know that the American people do not support the crimes their elected officials committed in Palestine and that American organizations are doing their part to hold these officials accountable," said Whitson. "We have a duty, not just a right, as American civil society, to exercise our free speech to serve truth and seek justice."
So far, efforts to hold Biden and other U.S. leaders accountable for enabling what many experts around the world have called Israel's genocidal assault on Gaza via the U.S. court system have been unsuccessful. That includes a December lawsuit against Blinken backed by DAWN—which was founded by assassinated Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
"We have tried every available avenue within the U.S. to stop our government's complicity in the outrageous crimes we've witnessed since October 2023 in Gaza," said Raed Jarrar, DAWN's advocacy director. "When domestic institutions fail to uphold black-letter laws prohibiting military support to commit war crimes, we have a particular responsibility as Americans to hold American officials accountable for their roles in those crimes."
Since Biden left office last month, U.S. President Donald Trump has already welcomed Netanyahu to the White House, responded to the warrants by targeting the ICC with sanctions, and promoted a U.S. takeover of Gaza that would involve ethnically cleansing the territory of Palestinians.
"Trump isn't just obstructing justice; he's trying to burn down the courthouse to prevent anyone from holding Israeli criminals accountable," said Jarrar. "His plan to forcibly displace all Palestinians from Gaza should also merit ICC investigation—not just for aiding and abetting Israeli crimes but for ordering forcible transfer, a crime against humanity under the Rome Statute."
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Biden Greenlights 'Racist' and 'Sociopathic' $8B Arms Sale to Israel
Multiple human rights organizations and international bodies have accused Israel of committing genocide in Gaza
Jan 04, 2025
The administration of US President Joe Biden announced on Saturday an arms sale to Israel valued at $8 billion, just ahead of President-elect Donald Trump's return to the White House.
Biden has repeatedly rejected calls to suspend military backing for Israel because of the number of civilians killed during the war in Gaza. Israel has killed more than 45,000 people in Gaza, primarily women and children.
The sale includes medium-range air-to-air missiles, 155mm projectile artillery shells for long-range targeting, Hellfire AGM-114 missiles, 500-pound bombs, and more.
Human rights groups, former State Department officials, and Democratic lawmakers have urged the Biden administration to halt arms sales to Israel, citing violations of US laws, including the Leahy Law, as well as international laws and human rights.
The Leahy Law, named after former Sen. Patrick Leahy, requires the US to withhold military assistance from foreign military or law enforcement units if there is credible evidence of human rights violations.
The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation’s most significant Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, today called Biden’s new $8 billion arms deal “racist” and “sociopathic.”
Multiple human rights organizations and international bodies have accused Israel of committing genocide in Gaza. The International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for committing war crimes.
The US is, by far, the biggest supplier of weapons to Israel, having helped it build one of the most technologically sophisticated militaries in the world.
CAIR National Executive Director Nihad Awad said on Saturday:
“We strongly condemn the Biden administration for its unbelievable and criminal decision to send another $8 billion worth of American weapons to the government of indicted war criminal Benjamin Netanyahu instead of using American leverage to force an end to the genocide in Gaza.
“Only racists who do not view people of color as equally human, and sociopaths who delight in funding mass slaughter, could send Netanyahu even more bombs while his government openly kidnaps doctors, destroys hospitals, and exterminates the last survivors in northern Gaza.
“If President Biden is actually the person who approved this new $8 billion arms sale, then he is a war criminal who belongs in a cell at The Hague alongside Netanyahu. But if Antony Blinken, Brett McGurk, Jake Sullivan, and other aides are making these unconscionable decisions as shadow presidents, then anyone with a conscience in the administration should speak up now about their abuses of power.”
According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), the US accounted for 69% of Israel's imports of major conventional arms between 2019 and 2023.
On the other hand, incoming President-elect Donald Trump has also pledged unwavering support for Israel and has never committed to supporting an independent Palestinian state.
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Why War Criminals Don't Like the ICC
The desire of the “great powers” to safeguard themselves from the enforcement of international law is exemplified by the record of the U.S. government.
Dec 08, 2024
The International Criminal Court’s recent issuance of arrest warrants to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for crimes against humanity and war crimes in Gaza has stirred up a considerable backlash. Dismissing the charges as “absurd and false,” Netanyahu announced that Israel would “not recognize the validity” of the ICC’s action. President Joe Biden denounced the arrest warrants as “outrageous,” while the French government, after agreeing to support them, reversed its stance.
Thanks to a vigorous campaign by human rights organizations, the International Criminal Court (ICC) became operational in 2002, with the mandate to prosecute individuals for genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity and, after 2018, the crime of aggression. Nations ratifying the Rome Statute, the ICC’s authorizing document, assumed responsibility for arresting these individuals and submitting them to the Court for trial. The ICC prosecutes cases only when countries are unwilling or unable to do so, for it was designed to complement, rather than replace, national criminal justice systems.
Operating with clearly delimited powers and limited funding, the ICC, headquartered at The Hague, has thus far usually taken modest but effective action to investigate, prosecute, and convict perpetrators of heinous atrocity crimes.
Although 124 nations have ratified the Rome Statute, Russia, China, the United States, India, Israel, and North Korea are not among them. Indeed, the world’s major military powers, accustomed to the privileged role in world affairs that their armed might usually affords them, have often been at odds with the ICC, for it has the potential to investigate, prosecute, and convict their own government officials.
The desire of the “great powers” to safeguard themselves from the enforcement of international law is exemplified by the record of the U.S. government. Although President Bill Clinton signed the Rome Statute in December 2000, he warned about “significant flaws in the treaty,” among them the inability to “protect US officials.” Refusing to support Senate ratification, he recommended that his successor continue this policy “until our fundamental concerns are satisfied.”
President George W. Bush “unsigned” the treaty in 2002, pressured other nations into bilateral agreements requiring them to refuse surrendering U.S. nationals to the Court, and signed the American Servicemembers Protection Act, authorizing the use of military force to liberate any Americans held for crimes by the ICC.
Although the Bush and Obama administrations subsequently warmed somewhat toward the Court, then engaged in prosecuting African warlords and Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, President Donald Trump reverted to staunch opposition in 2018, informing the UN General Assembly that the U.S. government would not support the ICC, which he claimed had “no jurisdiction, no legitimacy, and no authority.” In 2020, the Trump administration imposed economic sanctions and visa restrictions on top ICC officials for any effort to investigate the actions of U.S. personnel in Afghanistan.
Like the United States, Russia initially signed the Rome treaty. It withdrew its signature, however, after Ukraine appealed to the ICC in 2014 and 2015 to investigate war crimes and crimes against humanity that Russia committed in Ukraine. The ICC did launch a preliminary investigation that, after the full-scale Russian military invasion of February 2022 and Russian murder of Ukrainian civilians and prisoners of war in Bucha, expanded into a formal investigation. Taking bold action in March 2023, the ICC issued arrest warrants for Russian President Vladimir Putin and Commissioner for Children’s Rights Maria Lvova-Belova for the mass kidnapping of Ukrainian children.
Having previously denied wrongdoing in Bucha, the Russian government reacted furiously to the kidnapping charge. “The very question itself is outrageous,” declared Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, and the ICC’s decisions “are insignificant for the Russian Federation.” Dmitry Medvedev, deputy chair of the Russian Security Council and a former Russian president, publicly threatened a Russian hypersonic missile attack on the ICC headquarters, remarking: “Judges of the court, look carefully at the sky.” Subsequently, Moscow issued arrest warrants for top ICC officials.
Meanwhile, the United States has continued its ambivalence toward the ICC. President Joe Biden scrapped the Trump sanctions against the Court and authorized the sharing of information and funding for it in its investigations of Russian atrocities in Ukraine. But he reaffirmed “our government’s longstanding objection to the Court’s efforts to assert jurisdiction” over U.S. and Israeli officials.
The incoming Trump administration seems likely to take a much harsher line. The Republican-led House of Representatives recently passed legislation to sanction the ICC, while Senator Lindsay Graham (R-SC) called the Court a “dangerous joke,” urging Congress to sanction its prosecutor and warning U.S. allies that, “if you try to help the ICC, we’re going to sanction you.”
Given the policies of the “great powers,” are the Court’s efforts to enforce international law futile?
Leading human rights advocates don’t think so. “This is a big day for the many victims of crimes committed by Russian forces in Ukraine,” declared Amnesty International upon learning of the Court’s arrest warrants for top Russian officials. “The ICC has made Putin a wanted man and taken its first step to end the impunity that has emboldened perpetrators in Russia’s war.” Similarly, Kenneth Roth, the former executive director of Human Rights Watch, stated that the ICC’s issuance of arrest warrants for top Israeli officials represented “an important step toward justice for the Palestinian people…Israeli generals must now think twice about proceeding with the bombing and starving of Palestinian children.”
And, indeed, the ICC’s actions have started to bear fruit. Invited to South Africa to participate in a BRICS conference, Putin canceled his visit after his hosts explained that, in light of the arrest warrant, he was no longer welcome. Also, later that year, Russian officials returned hundreds of Ukrainian children to their parents. Although the results of the ICC’s action against Israeli officials are only starting to unfold, numerous countries have promised to honor the arrest warrants for Netanyahu and Gallant.
Even so, the ICC’s enforcement of international criminal justice would be considerably more effective if the major powers stopped obstructing its efforts.
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The True Meaning of ICC Arrest Warrants for US-Backed Israeli Leaders
One remains hopeful that the shifts of global powers will eventually save international law from the hypocrisy and opportunism of the west. But what is clear for now is that the west’s own conflict will only gain momentum.
Dec 02, 2024
The arrest warrants by the International Criminal Court (ICC) against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant are a diplomatic disaster for Israel, reported The Economist, a ‘hard stigma’ for the Israeli leader, wrote The Guardian, and a ‘major blow’, said others.
But a term that many seem to agree on is that the warrants represent an earthquake, though many are doubtful that Netanyahu would actually see his day in court.
The pro-Palestine camp, which as of late represents the majority of humankind, is torn between disbelief, skepticism, and optimism. It turned out that the international system has a pulse, after all, though faint, but is enough to rekindle hope that legal and moral accountability are still possible.
This mixture of feelings and strong language is a reflection of several important and interconnected experiences: one, the unprecedented extermination of a whole population which is currently being carried out by Israel against Palestinians in Gaza; two, the utter failure of the international community to stop the grisly genocide in the Strip; and, finally, the fact that the international legal system has historically failed to hold Israel, or any of the West’s allies anywhere, accountable to international law.
It would not be an exaggeration to claim that the ICC’s indictment of Netanyahu, as a representative of the political establishment in Israel, and Gallant, as the leader of the military class, is also an indictment of the United States.
The real earthquake is the fact that this is the first time in the history of the ICC that a pro-western leader is held accountable for war crimes. Indeed, historically, the vast majority of arrest warrants, and actual detention of accused war criminals seemed to target the Global South, and Africa, in particular.
Israel, however, is not an ordinary ‘western’ state. Zionism was a western-colonial invention, and the creation of Israel was only possible because of unhindered, die-hard western support.
Since its inception on the ruins of historic Palestine in 1948, Israel has served the role of the western-colonial citadel in the Middle East. The entire Israeli political discourse has been tailored and situated within western priorities and supposed values: civilization, democracy, enlightenment, human rights and the like.
With time, Israel became largely an American project, embraced by American liberals and religious conservatives alike.
America’s religious crowds were motivated by the biblical notion that “whoever blesses Israel will be blessed, And whoever curses Israel will be cursed”. The liberals, too, held Israel within a spiritual discourse, although disproportionately favored the classification of Israel as the ‘only democracy in the Middle East’, constantly emphasizing the ‘special relationship’, the ‘unbreakable bond’ and the rest.
Thus, it would not be an exaggeration to claim that the ICC’s indictment of Netanyahu, as a representative of the political establishment in Israel, and Gallant, as the leader of the military class, is also an indictment of the United States.
It is often reported that Israel would not have been able to carry on with its war, thus genocide, on Gaza without American military and political support. According to the investigative news website ProPublica, in the first year of the war, the US shipped over 50,000 tons of weaponry to Israel.
Mainstream American media and journalists are also culpable in that genocide. They elevated the now war criminals Netanyahu and Gallant, along with other Israeli political and military leaders, as if they were the defenders of a ‘civilized world’ against the ‘barbarians’. Those in the conservative media circles portrayed them as if prophets doing God’s work against the supposed heathens of the South.
They, too, have been indicted by the ICC, the kind of moral indictment, and ‘hard stigma’, that can never be eradicated.
When Karim Khan, the ICC’s Chief Prosecutor, originally filed for arrest warrants in May, many were in doubt, and justifiably so. The Israelis felt that their country commanded the needed support to disallow such warrants in the first place. They cited previous attempts, including a Belgian court case where victims of Israeli brutality in Lebanon attempted to hold former Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon accountable for the Sabra and Shatila massacre. Not only was the case dropped in 2003, but Belgium was pressured by the US to change its own laws so that they do not include universal jurisdiction in the case of genocide.
The Americans, too, were not terribly worried, as they were ready to punish ICC judges, defame Khan himself, and, according to a recent social media post by US Senator Tom Cotton, ready to ‘invade the Hague’.
In fact, this is not the first time that Americans, who are not signatories of the Rome Statute, thus not members of the ICC, flexed their muscles against those who merely attempted to enforce international law. In September 2020, the US government imposed sanctions on then-Chief Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda and another senior official, Phakiso Mochochoko.
Even those who wanted to see accountability for the Israeli genocide were in doubt, especially as pro-Israeli western governments, like that of Germany, stepped forward to prevent the warrants from being issued. Unreasonable delays in the proceedings contributed to the skepticism, especially as Khan himself was suddenly being paraded for supposed ‘sexual misconduct’.
Yet, after all of this, on November 21 the arrest warrants were issued, charging Netanyahu and Gallant with alleged ‘war crimes’ and ‘crimes against humanity’ - the other punishable offenses within the ICC jurisdiction being genocide and aggression.
Considering that the world’s highest court, the International Court of Justice, has already found that it is plausible that Israel’s acts could amount to genocide and is currently investigating the case, Israel, as a state, and top Israeli leaders have suddenly, and deservingly so, become the enemies of humanity.
While it is right and legitimate to argue that what matters most is the tangible outcome of these cases - ending the genocide while holding the Israeli war criminals accountable - we must not miss the greater meaning of these earth-shattering events.
The ICJ and the ICC are essentially two western institutions created to police the world by reinforcing the double standards resulting from the post-World War II western-dominated international system.
They are the legal equivalent of the Bretton Woods agreement, which regulated the international monetary system to serve US western interests. Though, in theory, they championed universally commendable values, in practice they merely served as tools of control and dominance for the western order.
For years, the world has been in a state of obvious and irreversible change. New powers were rising and others were shrinking. Political turmoil in the US, Britain and France were only reflections of the internal struggle in the west’s ruling classes. The incredible rise of China, the war in Europe and the growing resistance in the Middle East were outcomes and accelerators of that change.
The emphasis on credibility here is a culmination of the obvious loss of credibility on all fronts.
Thus the constant call for reforms in the post-WWII international system to reflect in a more equitable way the new global realities. Despite American-western resistance to change, new geopolitical formations continued to take place, regardless.
The Gaza genocide represents a watershed moment in these global dynamics. This was reflected in Karim Khan’s language when he requested the arrest warrants, stressing on the credibility of the court. “This is why we have a court,” he said in an exclusive interview with CNN on May 20. “It's about the equal application of the law. No people are better than another. No people anywhere are saints.”
The emphasis on credibility here is a culmination of the obvious loss of credibility on all fronts. This should hardly be a surprise as it was the west, the self-proclaimed champion of human rights, the very political entity that championed, defended and sustained the Israeli genocide.
While one would like to believe that the ICC’s arrest warrants were made exclusively for the sake of the victims of the Israeli genocide, plenty of evidence suggests that the unexpected move was a desperate western attempt at salvaging whatever little credibility it had maintained up to that moment.
The US government, an unrepentant violator of human rights, has maintained its strong position in defense of Israel, shaming the ICC for the warrants, not the Israeli war criminals for committing the genocide.
The conflict in Europe has been much more palpable, however, reflected in the position of Germany, which said it would “carefully examine” the arrest warrants but that it is “hard to imagine that we would make arrests on this basis”.
One remains hopeful that the shifts of global powers will eventually save international law from the hypocrisy and opportunism of the west. But what is clear for now is that the west’s own conflict will only gain momentum. Will those who created the Zionist Israeli menace be the very powers that demolish it? One is doubtful.
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Why the EU Must Honor ICC Arrest Warrant for Benjamin Netanyahu
Ensuring the ICC has the ability to implement arrest warrants will require defending the court against external pressure and coercive measures—including from powerful governments like the United States
Nov 29, 2024
After the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants against Israeli leaders and a Hamas official on November 21, European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell immediately made clear that ICC “decisions are binding on all States party to the Rome Statute, which includes all EU Member States.” His response is a reminder of the EU and its member states’ firm policy of supporting the ICC, especially when it comes to enforcing arrest warrants.
Over the years, the EU and its member states have developed several policies and practices building on their obligations to the court to support arrests before the ICC. This includes EU governments affirming their obligation as ICC members to carry out ICC arrests within their borders and supporting other ICC member countries to uphold their obligations.
Despite this, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has already invited Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is subject to one of the warrants, to visit Hungary and said he will not enforce the arrest warrant. Some other EU countries have not explicitly committed to enforcing the warrant, despite confirming their support for the ICC. This deepens perceptions of double standards in support of justice before the ICC.
To ensure EU member countries stand firm for justice across all the ICC’s cases, we outline the EU’s obligations and policies as they relate to arrest strategies in a new briefing paper. Firm state support can yield progress. Russian President Vladimir Putin, wanted by the ICC on allegations of serious crimes in Ukraine, recently stayed away from the G-20 summit in Brazil, an ICC member. But challenges for ICC arrests will likely remain. While Putin did not go to Brazil, he did visit Mongolia, also an ICC country, without facing arrest. This was rightfully challenged by the EU and before the court’s judges.
Each of the court’s pending warrants poses specific challenges, and failure to execute them breeds a climate of impunity. Recent attempts to undermine the ICC, including by Israel and Russia, and threats of sanctions by US lawmakers risk undoing investments by the EU and its member states in the court.
Ensuring the ICC has the ability to implement arrest warrants will require defending the court against external pressure and coercive measures. That means that right now EU support for arrests should include preparedness to adopt measures to protect the court from possible US sanctions.
The stakes are high, but when the EU takes a prominent role in supporting the court in partnership with justice-supporting governments globally, it can positively impact even the most difficult circumstances.
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US Complicity at a Crossroads: ICC Arrest Warrants Demand Accountability
Their entanglement in Israel’s war makes U.S. leaders vulnerable to legal accountability not just for aiding and abetting crimes, but for direct complicity in their commission.
Nov 22, 2024
The International Criminal Court (ICC) issued historic arrest warrants on Thursday for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, charging them with war crimes and crimes against humanity. This unprecedented move against Israeli officials holds profound implications not only for Israeli leaders but also for their enablers, including the United States. As the Biden administration continues to provide billions in military aid to Israel, these warrants serve as both a warning and a call to action. To avoid complicity in these crimes, top U.S. officials should immediately halt military assistance or risk legal repercussions for continued support of Israeli war crimes.
Significantly, the ICC also has a history of issuing sealed indictments that remain confidential until the targeted individuals enter a member state. This means that beyond Netanyahu and Gallant, other Israeli officials, most likely soldiers documented committing gross crimes, likely face undisclosed warrants, with far-reaching implications for Israeli military forces and those who support their actions.
As the Biden administration continues to provide billions in military aid to Israel, these warrants serve as both a warning and a call to action.
This development should serve as a wake-up call for the U.S. government. The Biden administration continues to provide billions of dollars in unrestricted military aid to Israel—$17.9 billion this year alone—despite a majority of Americans who now oppose such aid. Israeli forces have used these weapons to commit the very crimes for which the ICC has issued arrest warrants. This is not just morally indefensible; it is legally risky. Article 25(3)(c) of the Rome Statute explicitly outlines criminal liability for aiding and abetting war crimes. While the U.S. is not an ICC member state, its officials and leaders could still face prosecution for enabling crimes under the court’s jurisdiction, such as the crimes underway in Palestine.
It’s important to note that the Biden administration has not only armed Israel but has also contributed directly to operations on the ground, including intelligence sharing, targeting data, and direct military combat in Yemen and Iraq targeting armed groups who are fighting Israel. This entanglement in Israel’s war makes U.S. leaders vulnerable to legal accountability not just for aiding and abetting crimes, but for direct complicity in their commission. This moment calls for more than celebration—it demands meaningful and decisive action. For justice to prevail, the international community should rise to the occasion and ensure accountability at every level. A critical first step lies with the 124 member states of the ICC. These nations should publicly commit to upholding their obligations under international law by affirming their readiness to arrest Israeli officials if they enter their jurisdiction. Notably, countries such as the Netherlands, France, Canada, Spain, and Italy have already signaled their intent to enforce the ICC’s arrest warrants for Netanyahu and Gallant.
By cutting ties with leaders implicated in war crimes and crimes against humanity, nations can exert pressure on Israel to change course and demonstrate their commitment to upholding justice and human rights.
Beyond national commitments, ICC member states could leverage international mechanisms to restrict the movement of indicted individuals. They should work collectively to request Interpol Red Notices for Netanyahu, Gallant, and any other officials facing charges. These notices would alert law enforcement worldwide to the existence of arrest warrants, ensuring that the accused cannot travel freely without risk of apprehension and extradition. Such measures are not merely symbolic; they serve as a tangible step toward accountability, signaling to perpetrators and their supporters that the international community will not tolerate impunity.
Equally important is the need for countries to reevaluate and sever their political and military ties with Israel’s leadership, at least as long as Netanyahu serves as Israel prime minister. This includes halting weapons sales and other forms of military cooperation with the Netanyahu government. Military aid and arms exports fuel the very crimes that the ICC is now investigating, making complicity in these actions inexcusable. By cutting ties with leaders implicated in war crimes and crimes against humanity, nations can exert pressure on Israel to change course and demonstrate their commitment to upholding justice and human rights. These steps, taken collectively, would not only support the ICC’s mission but also strengthen the principles of accountability and rule of law in international relations.
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Failures of World Leaders Risk Collapse of International Order
To step back from the precipice we are at, those in positions of power must show long-view leadership to build a better world for current and future generations. But time is running out.
Jun 01, 2024
Note: At the conclusion of their board meeting in São Paulo, The Elders this week called on world leaders to uphold international law and prioritize multilateral cooperation to build a better world for current and future generations. The following was their message to those leaders and the world at large.
The world stands on the edge of a precipice. The foundations of international law and multilateral cooperation are at serious risk of collapse due to cumulative failures of political leadership. We face the most perilous moment since the Second World War.
The United Nations and other institutions created to promote the stability and accountability that come through the rule of law are under attack. The growing climate of impunity for states and leaders, who show no respect for the principles on which they were founded, may take us to a point of no return.
The principles of the UN Charter risk being subsumed by aggressive nationalism and great power rivalry. This is not in any state’s long-term interest, given the existential threats to humanity that can only be tackled by global cooperation within a framework of agreed rules.
The rule of law must be applied consistently. Double standards allow autocrats to frame the universal values of human rights and international law enshrined in the UN Charter as Western constructs. They are not. They serve the interests of every country.
International law must be applied universally. No country is above the law. But the double standards being displayed by some states, particularly the most powerful, weaken the credibility of global institutions charged with upholding the rule of law.
Russia’s war on Ukraine remains an act of aggression against a sovereign state and a fundamental attack on the UN Charter with global ramifications. Russian leaders must be held accountable. We support the International Criminal Court’s (ICC) efforts to bring them to justice.
The ICC and the International Court of Justice are both fulfilling their mandates to hold parties in the Israel-Hamas conflict to account under international law.
We oppose any attempts to de-legitimize this work, and threats of punitive measures and sanctions against the ICC Prosecutor or other officials.
The rule of law must be applied consistently. Double standards allow autocrats to frame the universal values of human rights and international law enshrined in the UN Charter as Western constructs. They are not. They serve the interests of every country.
The crumbling of the international order can be seen in the proliferation of conflicts, neglected by the world’s leaders and media, affecting 2 billion people in countries including Myanmar, Sudan, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Haiti.
The failure last week to agree a new pandemics treaty for approval by the World Health Assembly is another example of weak leadership. Scientists are clear that we risk another lethal pandemic. The world has not learned the lessons from COVID-19. We urgently need leaders to engage directly to secure a global agreement to prepare for, prevent and respond to such pandemics, so the world can cope better next time.
With vital negotiations approaching on the future of the world’s climate and biodiversity, countries must have confidence that when they make agreements with each other, those commitments will be implemented.
Now is the time for leaders to be honest with their people. The unpredictability and instability that comes when the rule of law is not guaranteed threatens the security of all countries. In a year of multiple elections, citizens also have a responsibility to cast their vote wisely, choosing leaders who take a longer view of protecting their interests, and rejecting populists who exploit fears and foster division for short-term gain.
As we conclude our board meeting in Brazil, we look to the country’s leadership to seize the opportunities presented by November’s G20 Summit and the major climate conference (COP30) in 2025, to work with other countries on restoring the credibility of the multilateral system and the trust which underpins it.
To step back from the precipice we are at, those in positions of power must show long-view leadership to build a better world for current and future generations. But time is running out to strengthen the institutions that make possible the collaboration needed to do so.
The Elders are:
Mary Robinson, former President of Ireland and Chair of The Elders
Ban Ki-moon, former UN Secretary-General and Deputy Chair of The Elders
Graça Machel, Founder of the Graça Machel Trust, Co-founder and Deputy Chair of The Elders
Gro Harlem Brundtland, former Prime Minister of Norway and former Director-General of the WHO
Helen Clark, former Prime Minister of New Zealand and former head of the UN Development Programme
Elbegdorj Tsakhia, former President and Prime Minister of Mongolia
Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein, former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights
Hina Jilani, Advocate of the Supreme Court of Pakistan and co-chair of the Taskforce on Justice
Denis Mukwege, physician and human rights advocate, Nobel Peace Laureate
Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, former President of Liberia and Nobel Peace Laureate
Juan Manuel Santos, former President of Colombia and Nobel Peace Laureate
Ernesto Zedillo, former President of Mexico
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US Cheered ICC Arrest Warrants for Putin's Crimes. Not So for Netanyahu's
Why everything Washington officials said in response to the request for warrants by the International Criminal Court's top prosecutor was wrong.
May 21, 2024
Karim A.A. Khan, chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC), said Monday that he is asking the the ICC to issue arrest warrants for several Hamas leaders as well as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Secretary of Defense Yoav Gallant.
It is the first time the ICC has sought warrants against leaders of a parliamentary government. Most of the officials indicted have been from African dictatorial regimes. If the warrants are approved, in a process that may take several months, Netanyahu and Galant will join a rogues gallery featuring deposed Libyan strongman Moammar Gaddafi, deposed Sudanese dictator Omar al-Bashir, and Russian President Vladimir Putin.
In March, 2023, just a year ago, Secretary of State Antony Blinken asked all countries that are parties to the ICC to detain Vladimir Putin if they could, after the court issued an arrest warrant for him. Russia is not a signatory to the Rome Statute that authorizes the court, but in 2015 Ukraine (also not a signatory) granted jurisdiction to the court over Ukrainian territory. It was for crimes committed in Ukraine that Putin was indicted.
The reaction in Washington to the warrant request for Netanyahu and Galant has been the opposite. This reaction shows that the Biden administration does not respect international law and does not care that Putin committed crimes under it, but just wants to stick it to Putin. It is personalistic, not a matter of law. Because if the law was at issue, it should apply to everyone, including (especially) Benjamin Netanyahu, the Butcher of Gaza.
Everything Washington officials said in response to the request for warrants was wrong. I mean, incorrect. It isn’t a matter of opinion or a difference in values. They are spewing falsehoods. It is as though they have all contracted Trumpitis and now keep compulsively telling serial lies.
President Biden, apparently now the chief defense attorney for Netanyahu, denounced any “equivalence” between Hamas and the Israeli leadership and said that he rejects charges of genocide against it.
Biden’s spokespeople questioned whether the ICC has jurisdiction to charge the Israeli leaders.
President Biden, apparently now the chief defense attorney for Netanyahu, denounced any “equivalence” between Hamas and the Israeli leadership and said that he rejects charges of genocide against it.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken condemned the announcement as “outrageous” and said that it threatened the success of negotiations toward a ceasefire and a hostage release. Mr. Blinken did not explain why the ICC request for warrants should should delay a ceasefire. The Biden administration vetoed 3 ceasefire calls at the UN Security Council earlier this year, and abstained on a fourth, which it undercut by falsely damning it as “non-binding.”
Speaker of the House of Representatives Mike Johnson said he and his colleagues would look into the possibility of placing sanctions on the ICC judges and their families.
The 18 judges are elected to nine-year terms by an assembly of the 124 states that are signatories to the Rome Statute, finalized in 2002, which authorizes the court and lays out International Humanitarian Law. The ICC therefore represents nearly two thirds of the countries in the world. Mike Johnson represents a district in Louisiana.
The parties to the International Criminal Court include Britain, Canada, France, Belgium, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Denmark, Ireland, Switzerland, Japan, Spain, Sweden, as well as the State of Palestine and large numbers of countries in Asia, Africa, Latin America and the Pacific. It took some courage to sign the Rome Statute, since the officials of the signatory country place themselves under the authority of the judges. It is not a courage that the United States, Israel or Russia displayed, and it is disgraceful that the United States has not signed the major human rights instrument of the twenty-first century.
So why is everything Washington is saying about the decision of Karim Khan wrong?
First, the request for warrants does not make an equivalence between Israel and Hamas. The court does not judge countries, it judges individual officials.
These are the charges against the three Hamas leaders, aside from just killing a lot of innocents:
- — Rape and other acts of sexual violence as crimes against humanity, contrary to article 7(1)(g), and also as war crimes pursuant to article 8(2)(e)(vi) in the context of captivity;
—Torture as a crime against humanity, contrary to article 7(1)(f), and also as a war crime, contrary to article 8(2)(c)(i), in the context of captivity;
—Other inhumane acts as a crime against humanity, contrary to article 7(l)(k), in the context of captivity;
—Cruel treatment as a war crime contrary to article 8(2)(c)(i), in the context of captivity; and
—Outrages upon personal dignity as a war crime, contrary to article 8(2)(c)(ii), in the context of captivity.
Rape, torture, hostage taking bulk large.
Here are the charges against Netanyahu and Gallant:
- —Starvation of civilians as a method of warfare as a war crime contrary to article 8(2)(b)(xxv) of the Statute;
—Wilfully causing great suffering, or serious injury to body or health contrary to article 8(2)(a)(iii), or cruel treatment as a war crime contrary to article 8(2)(c)(i);
—Wilful killing contrary to article 8(2)(a)(i), or Murder as a war crime contrary to article 8(2)(c)(i);
—Intentionally directing attacks against a civilian population as a war crime contrary to articles 8(2)(b)(i), or 8(2)(e)(i);
—Extermination and/or murder contrary to articles 7(1)(b) and 7(1)(a), including in the context of deaths caused by starvation, as a crime against humanity;
—Persecution as a crime against humanity contrary to article 7(1)(h);
—Other inhumane acts as crimes against humanity contrary to article 7(1)(k).
The charges aren’t the same, or equivalent, at all. The Israeli officials are charged with starving the civilian population, blowing up the civilian population, exterminating the civilian population. There is no mention of rape or torture or hostage taking. In each case the officials are being charged for their specific actions.
The Israeli officials are not charged with genocide by the ICC, contrary to what Mr. Biden alleged.
The reason that the ICC has jurisdiction is that the State of Palestine has very doggedly and brilliantly arranged for that jurisdiction. First, Palestine sought to be admitted as a non-member observer state of the United Nations, the same status that the Vatican has. The UN General Assembly voted Palestine in some 12 years ago. As an observer state, it gained the right to become a signatory to the Rome Statute, which it did in 2015. Then Palestine asked the ICC to exercise jurisdiction over the Occupied Palestinian Territories, which had de jure been granted to the State of Palestine by the 1993 Oslo Peace Treaty, signed by Bill Clinton, Yitzhak Rabin and Yasser Arafat.
On February 5, 2021, the ICC concluded that it does have jurisdiction over actions taken in the Occupied Territories. Gaza is included in that jurisdiction.
Hence, the ICC can issue the request for warrants against Hamas war criminals as well as against Israeli officials who commit war crimes or crimes against humanity in the Occupied Territories. It most definitely has jurisdiction. In fact, since Palestine is a party to the ICC, the case for jurisdiction here is much stronger than for Ukraine and Putin.
Prime Minister Netanyahu has repeatedly rejected the whole notion of a ceasefire and contrary to Mr. Blinken’s flagrant toadying there is no prospect of any such ceasefire. Hamas offered a hostage deal on the eve of the invasion of Rafah, and Netanyahu invaded precisely in order to torpedo any deal. That is why Israelis are demonstrating in the tens of thousands against Netanyahu. If Blinken had any shame he’d fly to Tel Aviv and join them. The ICC decision is completely irrelevant to negotiations, which have in any case collapsed and are not ongoing. Blinken is trying to blame Karim Khan for his own egregious failure as a diplomat. Unlike Khan, Blinken has done nothing practical to hold Netanyahu to account for repeatedly violating the Biden administration’s toothless red lines.
As for Mike Johnson and his merry band of GOP troglodytes, he should be careful if he’d ever like to vacation in Rio or in most of Europe.
Article 70 of the Rome Statute has these paragraphs prohibiting:
- d) Impeding, intimidating or corruptly influencing an official of the Court for the purpose of forcing or persuading the official not to perform, or to perform improperly, his or her duties;
(e) Retaliating against an official of the Court on account of duties performed by that or another official;
The Court should play hardball with politicians that try to sanction its judges and should issue warrants against them. Wouldn’t it be lovely to see Mike Johnson arrested while on vacation at the Copacabana Beach in Rio de Janeiro and unceremoniously flown to the Hague in handcuffs? And Mike Pompeo and Trump, who did sanction ICC judges, should also have warrants out. Though with Trump the ICC would have to get in line behind a whole gaggle of prosecutors waving warrants for an endless list of crimes.
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Israel's Deadly Bombing of World Central Kitchen Convoy Was No Anomaly: Report
A new analysis from Human Right Watch argues that numerous attacks on humanitarian relief operations by Israeli forces prove the April 1 bombing that killed 7 people was "far from being an isolated 'mistake.'"
May 14, 2024
A deadly attack on a convoy of World Central Kitchen aid workers which killed 7 people last month was not a one-off occurrence, Human Rights Watch said Tuesday, but rather representative of a documented pattern in which Israel military forces have targeted relief personnel and infrastructure despite being informed of the exact locations of those operations.
"Even though aid groups had provided their coordinates to the Israeli authorities to ensure their protection," an analysis by HRW found that eight such attacks on such operations, including the April 1 bombing of the WCK in Deir al-Balah, have been carried out by Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) over the last seven months.
According to the group's report, "Israeli authorities did not issue advance warnings to any of the aid organizations before the strikes, which killed or injured at least 31 aid workers and those with them."
"Israel's allies need to recognize that these attacks that have killed aid workers have happened over and over again, and they need to stop." —Belkis Willi, HRW
Details of the various attacks, said HRW, show that the WCK bombing was "far from being an isolated 'mistake,'" as the Israeli government has claimed.
Citing figures from the United Nations, HRW notes that over 250 aid workers have been killed in Gaza by Israel since the Hamas-led attack on October 7 of last year.
"Israel's killing of seven World Central Kitchen aid workers was shocking and should never have happened under international law," said Belkis Wille, associate crisis, conflict, and arms director at Human Rights Watch. "Israel's allies need to recognize that these attacks that have killed aid workers have happened over and over again, and they need to stop."
The other seven attacks documented in the report are:
- Attack on a Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF or Doctors without Borders) convoy, November 18, 2023
- Attack on a guest house of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), December 9, 2023
- Attack on an MSF shelter, January 8, 2024
- Attack on an International Rescue Committee (IRC) and Medical Aid for Palestinians (MAP) guest house, January 18, 2024
- Attack on an UNRWA convoy, February 5, 2024
- Attack on an MSF guest house, February 20, 2024
- Attack on a home sheltering an American Near East Refugee Aid Organization (Anera) employee, March 8, 2024
Human Rights Watch sent a letter to Israeli authorities requesting more information about these documented incidents, but said it received no response.
"Israel should make public the findings of investigations into attacks that have killed and injured aid workers, and into all other attacks that caused civilian casualties," the group said on Tuesday. "The Israeli military's long track record of failing to credibly investigate alleged war crimes underscores the importance of the International Criminal Court's (ICC) inquiry into serious crimes committed by all parties to the conflict."
In addition to military targeting of relief operations, the Israeli military has been accused of various crimes, including indiscriminate bombing of civilian populations, forced displacement, and the targeting of medical facilities.
Also on Tuesday, Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF/Doctors Without Borders) released a report documenting Israel's pattern of attacking its facilities, including hospitals, clinics, and ambulance services in Gaza during the current campaign.
"In view of this extensive timeline of reprehensible actions, MSF once again calls on all parties to respect and protect healthcare facilities, healthcare workers and patients in Gaza and the West Bank," the group said Tuesday. "An immediate and sustained ceasefire must be implemented in Gaza now to put an end to the suffering of people and the destruction of Gaza. We demand an immediate and unfettered flow of aid into the entirety of the Gaza Strip. We demand accountability for our colleagues and their family members who have been killed and wounded, and for patients."
In early May, following a month pause of Gaza operations following the deadly attack, WCK announced it was resuming its relief efforts in the area. It has also started construction on a new kitchen facility to elevate and support its mission to feed the people of Gaza as Israel's assault not only continues but intensifies.
"We have spent the past few weeks honoring the lives of Saif, Zomi, Damian, Jacob, James, John, and Jim. We are restarting our operation with the same energy, dignity, and focus on feeding people as these seven heroes brought to their work every single day," the groups said on May 5. "As our work in Gaza resumes, our demand for an impartial and international investigation into the April 1 attack remains."
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