As Netanyahu Visits U.S., Palestinian Americans Call on DOJ to Enforce ICC Arrest Warrant for Crimes in Gaza

Today, as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu meets with President Trump in Washington, Palestinian Americans are calling on the Department of Justice to investigate Netanyahu for genocide, torture, and war crimes, and to enforce the International Criminal Court’s arrest warrant for his leading role in war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza. A submission sent on their behalf by the Center for Constitutional Rights urges the DOJ’s Human Rights and Special Prosecution Section to proceed with investigations and prosecution, and to immediately effectuate Netanyahu’s surrender to the court in The Hague for further proceedings.

“The person who is responsible for the killing and displacement of my entire family in Gaza, and who has an outstanding ICC warrant for his arrest, is being greeted with a red carpet at the White House. This is shameful, and sends the world a message that there is no accountability for genocide,” said Basim Elkarra.

The ICC’s Pre-Trial Chamber issued an arrest warrant for Nentanyahu in November, finding reasonable grounds to believe he is responsible for using starvation as a weapon of war and intentionally directing an attack against the civilian population – both war crimes – and the crimes against humanity of murder, persecution, and other inhumane acts. Today’s letter cites the responsibility of the U.S. government to open investigations itself and support for it to enforce the warrant stemming from its ratification of the Genocide Convention, the Geneva Conventions, and the Convention Against Torture.

“Instead of meeting its obligations to investigate and prosecute Benjamin Netanyahu for genocide, torture, and war crimes, the United States is welcoming the man responsible for the 15-month genocidal campaign against Palestinians in Gaza with open arms and promises of even more weapons,” said Katherine Gallagher, Center for Constitutional Rights Senior Staff Attorney and ICC Legal Representative for Victims in the Situation in the State of Palestine. “The International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for Netanyahu for his role in the mass murder, starvation, denial of access to food, water, and medicine, and persecution of Palestinians in Gaza. The U.S. should move toward prosecuting Netanyahu now or surrender him to the ICC, not further prop him up and bolster his sense of impunity.”

The five signatories – Waeil Elbhassi, Laila Elhaddad, Basim Elkarra, Mohammad Herzallah, and Ayman Nijim – were all plaintiffs in a lawsuit charging then-President Biden, Secretary Blinken, and Secretary Austin with failure to prevent and complicity in Israel’s genocide in Gaza. A federal judge said Israel’s actions “plausibly” constituted genocide but dismissed the suit on jurisdictional grounds.

“A year ago, a federal court told us that Israel was plausibly committing genocide, but that the court’s hands were tied,” said Ayman Nijim. “Today, even though there’s an international warrant for his arrest, Netanyahu is visiting the U.S. with impunity.”

While genocide was not among the charges in the ICC warrant, its conclusions, according to the Center for Constitutional Rights, in fact support a finding that the underlying acts of this most serious human rights crime have been committed in that they confirm that Israel inflicted conditions on Palestinians intended to cause their destruction in whole or in part.

“As a Palestinian-American from Gaza whose family members have suffered immeasurably to Israel’s ongoing assault, I find it appalling that President Trump is meeting with Benjamin Netanyahu—a man facing International Criminal Court arrest warrants for war crimes and crimes against humanity,” said Laila Elhaddad. “This meeting is yet another reminder of how Israeli officials complicit in atrocities continue to be shielded by political power rather than held accountable. This is not diplomacy, it is complicity: justice demands action, not handshakes with war criminals.”

Today’s submission is a follow-up to a letter sent by the Center for Constitutional Rights in July in which it called on the DOJ to open a criminal investigation into Netanyahu for genocide, war crimes, and torture.

Attachments