22 August 2024: Three Geneva-based organisations have announced the launch of a campaign to a number of Western governments and parliaments urging them to freeze military and trade relations with Israel, which continues to commit genocide in Gaza, reports Middle East Monitor.
Letters have been sent by the Geneva Centre for Democracy and Human Rights (GCDHR), the Geneva Council For International Affairs and Development (GCIAD) and the International Jurists Union (IJU) in Geneva.
The organisations reminded the governments of Britain and Switzerland and the European Union that the International Court of Justice had concluded that the crimes of apartheid, military occupation and annexation of Palestinian lands are illegal measures. This means that all states, local governments, companies and institutions must immediately end all forms of connivance with Israeli crimes and violations of international law, and break with the root and fundamental cause of the 76 years ongoing occupation.
The organisations expressed their deep concern about the serious and catastrophic situation in Gaza and urged the UK government to suspend any legal concerns regarding the International Criminal Court.
The correspondence, which has been reviewed by Arabi21, stressed that removing the barriers will allow the International Criminal Court to issue an urgent arrest warrant against Israeli officials responsible for the crimes committed in Gaza, according to the statements of the International Criminal Court and United Nations rapporteurs.
It stressed the need for the UK government to stop all the challenges faced by the International Criminal Court and impose sanctions on those involved in the plausible genocide, as described by the International Court of Justice. It stated that it is important and urgent that the elected UK government supports the implementation of the measures advised by the International Court of Justice.
The correspondence recalled violations, including the statement of the Israeli Defence Minister in the first week of the Israeli attacks, when he said that there would be no investigation into Israel’s actions and that the Palestinians were like animals and there was a need to respond to them as animals rather than as human beings.
The MEM report said that the organisations highlighted in their correspondence that what the Israeli occupation is committing in the Gaza Strip is a serious violation of the Fourth Geneva Convention, and most of these acts are considered war crimes and crimes against humanity that violate all international laws related to human rights. Cutting off electricity and water to about 2.2 million residents is collective punishment prohibited by all international human rights laws. Under these circumstances, the United Nations and international courts, such as the International Criminal Court and the bodies of the International Court of Justice, should be allowed to play an active and decisive role in defending the rights of civilians and preventing the genocide, without any hindrance.
These organisations stressed that, without the support of international law and international justice, Israel will continue its full-scale destruction of Gaza, its illegal occupation and blockade and continue to subject Palestinians to collective punishment measures, in violation of international law, while ignoring the international community’s repeated demands to stop the bombing and allow access to water, electricity, food and medicine.
They added that “all governments have a responsibility to uphold international justice and hold accountable those responsible for war crimes and genocide. For this reason, the organisations have called on the emergency of taking the necessary steps and fulfil the UK’s obligations under international law.”
They also urged the European Union to cut off commercial and military relations, and called on the Swiss government to assume its responsibilities and call on the parties to an urgent meeting in Geneva and oblige Israel to respect the Geneva Conventions sponsored by the Swiss state and whose implementation is ensured by the United Nations bodies, including the International Court of Justice.
The Geneva Council For International Affairs and Development (GCIAD) received a response from the British Foreign Office to its correspondence, stating that the killing and destruction in Gaza is unacceptable and that the UK government is pushing for an immediate ceasefire.
The correspondence also stated that the UK government will support the humanitarian effort and provide more funding to trusted organisations, including UNRWA, whose support will continue after it has been previously frozen.
On 26 January, the new British government withdrew its objection to the International Criminal Court issuing arrest warrants for Netanyahu and Galant, saying the case “concerns the court’s work”.
Last May, Starmer said on the issue: “The Court must be able to make its decision when the time comes. I support the Court and international law.”
The International Criminal Court’s Prosecutor, Karim Khan, announced last May that he had asked the Court to issue arrest warrants against Netanyahu and Galant on several charges, including committing “crimes against humanity” in Gaza.
In disregard of the international community, Tel Aviv continues the war, ignoring the United Nations Security Council resolutions to end it immediately and the International Court of Justice orders to take measures to prevent acts of genocide and improve the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza.
Prior to that, the British Foreign Secretary, David Lammy, announced his government’s decision to resume funding the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA).
On 26 January, 18 countries and the European Union suspended their funding to UNRWA over Israeli allegations that Agency employees were linked to Hamas, but some of these countries began reviewing their decisions regarding the United Nations agency in March and released funding for it.
The Israeli allegations against UNRWA come as Tel Aviv has been waging a devastating war on the Gaza Strip since 7 October, which has led to it appearing before the International Court of Justice on charges of committing “genocide”, after the war left more than 128,000 Palestinian martyrs and wounded, most of them women and children, in addition to an unprecedented humanitarian disaster and a massive destruction of the infrastructure.
Tel Aviv continues this war, ignoring the UN Security Council resolutions to stop it immediately and the International Court of Justice orders to take measures to prevent acts of genocide and to improve the catastrophic humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip.
