House Passes Bill To Sanction ICC, Limit Accountability for Crimes in Gaza | Palestine Policy Roundup 06.07.24
Welcome to the Palestine Policy Roundup, a weekly publication of the IMEU Policy Project.
👀 ICYMI: MEMBERS OF CONGRESS SPEAK OUT
Sen. Bernie Sanders: “Benjamin Netanyahu is a war criminal. He should not be invited to address a joint meeting of Congress. I certainly will not attend … Israel does not have the right to kill more than 34,000 civilians. It does not have the right to orphan 19,000 children. It does not have the right to annihilate Gaza’s health care system, knocking 26 hospitals out of service and killing more than 400 health care workers.”
Rep. Cori Bush: “The GOP’s bill to sanction the International Criminal Court is repugnant. Rather than obstructing justice and shielding the Israeli government from accountability, Congress should focus on advancing legislation that ends the genocide and saves lives.”
Rep. Delia Ramirez on the ICC sanctions bill: “When my Republican colleagues cannot legislate and instead decide to score cheap political points, they fear-monger, punish and silence. Today, I voted no on H.R. 8282 because I believe we must affirm accountability to international humanitarian law and put an end to impunity for those who violate it.”
Sen. Peter Welch: “Is Israel’s use of our planes, our tanks, our bombs, our ammunition worth the cost in civilian lives? … I believe the answer is no. The United States must stop providing offensive weapons and munitions to a polarizing foreign leader who treats billions of dollars in military aid from American taxpayers as an entitlement while he ignores the appeals of the American officials to stop bombing, shooting, and denying aid to Palestinian civilians.”
Rep. Ayanna Pressley: “The Israeli military is once again using U.S. weapons to massacre the Palestinian people. We cannot and must not be complicit. Offensive arms embargo now.”
DC DEVELOPMENTS
HOUSE PASSES BILL TO SANCTION ICC
This week the House voted 247-155–with 42 Democrats crossing party lines–on H.R. 8282, a partisan bill to reimpose Trump-era sanctions on the International Criminal Court (ICC) for seeking arrest warrants to hold accountable Israeli and Palestinian actors for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity.
The bill would revoke the ability of ICC officials and their family members to enter the US and block the property of foreign persons who assist the ICC with investigating the actions of US allies. The bill would also rescind any funds already obligated to the ICC and block future appropriations to support its work.
The vote on this bill comes after ICC Prosecutor Karim Khan announced on May 20 the filing of applications for arrest warrants of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, along with Hamas leaders Yahya Sinwar, Mohammed Deif, and Ismail Haniyeh.
Obstructing the ICC from pursuing accountability for those charged with war crimes and crimes against humanity compromises the stated commitment of the Biden administration and Congress to center human rights in US foreign policy. The ICC is seeking to hold all actors accountable for their actions. Applying the same set of standards to all is moral, legal, and political consistency, not an equivalency as claimed by the Biden administration and some Members of Congress.
LEARN MORE: Read the IMEU Policy Project’s policy memo on this bill.
PRESIDENT BIDEN ANNOUNCES CEASEFIRE PROPOSAL
Last week President Biden announced that Israel transmitted a three-phase ceasefire proposal to Hamas and publicly presented some of its contents. An anonymous senior Israeli official has since come out and called Biden’s description of the deal not accurate, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reacted to the speech by clarifying that the Israeli government will not agree to a permanent ceasefire until after the elimination of the military and governing capabilities of Hamas. A permanent ceasefire is reportedly a key sticking point in negotiations between Israel and Hamas. The proposal does not provide a clear framework for a permanent ceasefire and a withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza.
President Biden may attempt to present himself as a peacemaker, but he has had all the leverage to end Israel’s genocide in Gaza from day one. At every turn, he has sent more and more weapons to Israel. The Biden administration cannot call for a ceasefire while sending bombs that burn children sleeping in tents. It is a violation of US law and morality to send a single additional weapon for this genocide. Congress must continue to pressure the Biden administration to use its leverage and halt all weapons to Israel and promote a permanent ceasefire in Gaza, as well as accountability for Israel’s crimes.
IN THE NEWS
ISRAEL TARGETED MORE THAN 120 MEMBERS OF CONGRESS IN DISINFORMATION CAMPAIGN
An investigation by the New York Times found that Israel’s Ministry of Diaspora Affairs funded a covert influence campaign against members of Congress in order to generate more support for Israel’s war on Gaza.
Approximately 600 fake accounts posing as Americans posted more than 2,000 comments per week supporting Israel’s military actions in Gaza, dismissing human rights abuses, and calling on lawmakers to continue funding for Israel’s military assault on Gaza. A report by Meta noted that the campaign impersonated Jewish students, Black Americans, and other concerned citizens and targeted predominantly Black and Democratic Members of Congress, including Rep. Ilhan Omar, Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, Sen. Raphael Warnock, among others.
This is far from the first time that Israel has supported such an operation against Americans. Congress and the Biden administration must take this disinformation campaign as seriously as they have taken other disinformation campaigns conducted by Russia, China and other nations. If the Israeli government is responsible, it should be held to be in violation of §2756 of the Arms Export Control Act, which prohibits US weapons to a country engaged in a consistent pattern of acts of intimidation or harassment directed against individuals in the United States.
NAACP CALLS ON PRESIDENT BIDEN TO HALT ALL WEAPONS TO ISRAEL
The NAACP has urged the Biden administration to halt all weapons to Israel and use its leverage to achieve a permanent ceasefire in Gaza. NAACP President Derrick Johnson said the decision was motivated in part by young Black Americans viewing the carnage of Israeli genocide on their phones, and called on the administration to show moral leadership by halting weapons to Israel. This statement demonstrates yet again that key constituencies of the President’s, like Black voters, are unhappy with his actions in Gaza. A recent poll by In Our Own Voice: National Black Women’s Reproductive Justice Agenda found that one in six Black voters are considering not voting as a form of protest in the upcoming election, and that nearly a quarter of Black voters identified Israel’s war on Gaza as an extremely important issue. In an ultra-competitive race with Donald Trump, President Biden cannot afford to further erode his base of support; he must reverse course on his Gaza policy now.
PALESTINE/ISRAEL DEVELOPMENTS
REPORTS FIND FAMINE POSSIBLY UNDERWAY IN GAZA
A report from the Famine Early Warning Systems Network found that famine began in Gaza in April and is likely underway as Israel continues to obstruct desperately needed aid. The organization also warned that whether or not Gaza has officially reached the point of famine, starvation and death are still widespread and that by the time a famine is officially declared many people will have already died from starvation. The report also noted that restrictions on humanitarian access to Gaza impeded data collection needed to make a definitive assessment on famine, and that current efforts to increase aid into Gaza are insufficient and urged Israel’s government to act.
The Hunger Hotspots report on global hunger published by the World Food Programme and the Food and Agriculture Organization found that more than one million people in Gaza are expected to face death and starvation by mid-July. The report also noted that a lack of humanitarian access and expanding military operations in Rafah and elsewhere is likely to continue this worst case scenario.
The Biden administration must act on these clear examples of the devastation caused by Israel blocking aid into Gaza. These actions clearly violate US laws and policies about weapons transfers to Israel, especially Section 620I of the Foreign Assistance Act and NSM-20. Congress must keep up the pressure on the Biden administration to follow those laws and policies and halt all weapons to Israel.
US WEAPONS USED IN ISRAELI STRIKE ON UNRWA SCHOOL IN GAZA
An investigation by CNN found that US-made GBU-39 small diameter bombs were likely used in an Israeli airstrike on an UNRWA school being used as a shelter, an attack which killed more than forty people. The report noted that 20,000 people were believed to be taking shelter inside and in the vicinity of the school when it was struck by Israeli forces. This is the second time in two weeks that CNN has identified US weapons being used by Israel to kill displaced Palestinians. Last week CNN also found evidence of US weapons used in Israel’s airstrike on the Tal al-Sultan neighborhood in Rafah. That airstrike killed forty-five people after bombs sparked a devastating fire which ripped through tents in the area.
This attack comes as Israel has reportedly expanded its bombing throughout Gaza. The Palestinian Authority Ministry of Education and Higher Education said this week that fifteen thousand children have been killed by Israel during its genocide in Gaza so far.
The US is clearly complicit in Israel’s targeting of displaced Palestinians and in the widespread death and destruction in Gaza. These acts are very clearly being committed with weapons that the US is providing to Israel. Congress can put an end to these atrocities by acting to stop all weapons to Israel as is required by US law when countries use US weapons in violation of international law.
THOUSANDS OF ISRAELIS MARK OCCUPATION OF WEST BANK, GAZA, JERUSALEM, ATTACK PALESTINIANS
Thousands of Israelis marched in Jerusalem this week to celebrate Israel’s violent occupation of the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and Gaza. Some Israelis attacked Palestinians and journalists and chanted genocidal slogans, including “Death to the Arabs” and “May your village burn.” This “Jerusalem Day” march is a yearly celebration of Israel’s seizure of all of Palestinian territory, as well as the Syrian Golan Heights. It includes provocative marches through Palestinian neighborhoods in Jerusalem and regularly features attacks on Palestinians. The Golan Heights, the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and Gaza continue to be occupied today, and Palestinians (and Syrians in the Golan Heights) are subjected to Israel’s military rule and apartheid system which controls every aspect of their lives.