Johnathan Paoli
Nearly 50 South African lawyers have declared their intention to bring a lawsuit against the United States government on the grounds that they are complicit in Israeli forces’ war crimes in Palestine.
This follows on South Africa case against Israel at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) for genocide in Gaza which was filed last week.
“We hereby place the Government of the United States of America… on notice that we intend to bring legal proceedings against the US Government based on overwhelming evidence that the US Government has, and is, aiding, abetting and supporting, encouraging or providing material assistance and means to Israel and the Israeli Defense Forces (‘Israel’),” the attorney’s letter to the White House read.
The team of lawyers headed by attorney Wikus Van Rensburg claimed in particular that the US President Joe Biden and his administration authorised a recent package of weapons and ammunition to Israel without congressional approval, despite the fact that international law required weaponry transferred between countries to be utilitsed in a manner consistent with protecting civilian lives.
The letter stated that the US government proceeded with the full knowledge of the danger involved to Palestinians, specifically women and children, from the Israeli government, under the hand of its armed forces.
Van Rensburg said that without going into the historical background of the US’ blind support for Israel, in excess of the past 75 years, the government used purported emergency authority provisions to provide 14 000 tank shells, worth approximately $106.5 million for delivery to Israel in December last year.
Van Rensburg called into focus the lasting legacy of the Balfour Declaration of 1917, which served as a beacon of American and British support for the establishment of a “national home for the Jewish people” in Palestine, to the factual detriment of the Palestinian people, as could be witnessed today.
The United States has a long history of supporting Israel, dating back to Israel’s founding in 19481, with the provision of $158 billion in military aid to Israel since its founding, making it the greatest recipient in history.
In the recent Israel-Hamas conflict, the US sent warships and military aircraft into the Eastern Mediterranean as well as the supply of ammunition and military equipment.
On 20 October last year, Biden announced that he had asked Congress for $14 billion in additional aid.
However, this support has faced increasing backlash, with the US vetoing multiple UN Security Council resolutions calling for a ceasefire, and increased humanitarian aid to be allowed into the region.
The US stance has left it increasingly isolated on the world stage, following a UN general assembly vote calling for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza, 153 member states out of 193 total membership backed the resolution, with only 10 including the US, Israel and Austria voting against, and 23 including the UK and Germany, abstaining.
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