US Sanctions Palestinian Groups Over ’Israel’ War Crimes Probe

By Staff, Agencies

The United States has announced sanctions against three Palestinian human rights organizations that requested the International Criminal Court [ICC] to investigate "Israel" for genocide in Gaza.

The sanctions were revealed through a notice on the US Treasury Department's website on Thursday.

The affected organizations include the Gaza-based Palestinian Center for Human Rights, the Al Mezan Center for Human Rights, and the Ramallah-based Al-Haq. The Treasury Department categorized these groups under designations related to the ICC.

In November 2023, these groups urged the ICC to investigate “Israeli” airstrikes, Gaza’s siege, and mass displacement. A year later, the ICC issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and former war minister Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity.

The sanctions follow Trump-era actions that targeted ICC judges and prosecutors over probes into alleged "Israeli" and US war crimes in Afghanistan.

The US sanctions on Palestinian groups came days after the top genocide scholars' association declared "Israel’s" actions in Gaza meet genocide criteria.

Craig Mokhiber, ex-UN human rights director, resigned in October 2023 condemning the Gaza genocide and called Trump-era sanctions on human rights groups a blatant attack on defenders respected worldwide.

"This is a global rampage threatening all human rights defenders," Mokhiber stated. "We must stand in solidarity with them, as well as with UN human rights rapporteur Francesca Albanese and the International Criminal Court. This is indeed a Spartacus moment for all of us."