US sanctions Palestinian officials over ICJ and ICC cases
According to the State Department, the unnamed officials were 'not complying with their commitments and undermining the prospects for peace'.
It cited 'initiating and supporting actions at international organizations' and 'taking actions to internationalize its conflict with Israel such as through the International Criminal Court (ICC) and International Court of Justice (ICJ)'.
Washington accused the figures of violating the PLO Commitments Compliance Act of 1989 (PLOCCA) and the Middle East Peace Commitments Act of 2002 (MEPCA).
Since the war on Gaza began in October 2023, Israel has found itself diplomatically isolated as a result of atrocities committed against Palestinians in Gaza and its occupation of the West Bank and East Jerusalem.
New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch
Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters
It faces two cases at the ICJ, one over what the court called a 'plausible' case for genocide in Gaza, and another for its occupation of Palestinian territories.
The former was filed by South Africa and is backed by several other states, and the latter is a result of a UN General Assembly resolution from 2022, calling for the ICJ to issue an advisory opinion on the legality of the occupation.
Resignation of UN commission on Israel-Palestine not linked to fear of sanctions, say members Read More »
The draft motion for that resolution had been filed by the Palestinian mission to the UN.
At the ICC, prosecutors have issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former minister of defence, Yoav Gallant, for crimes against humanity and war crimes.
The US had previously sanctioned ICC prosecutor Karim Khan and had threatened Palestinian officials with sanctions for their role in using international law to bring Israel to account.
Washington's manoeuvre against the PA comes as momentum builds in the international community for recognition of a Palestinian state.
France has already announced that it will recognise the state of Palestine at the upcoming UN General Assembly, while Canada and the UK have announced they will also recognise the state under conditions that leave the countries diplomatic space to backtrack.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Al Etihad
2 hours ago
- Al Etihad
Gaza: Alarm over Israeli move to deregister NGOs
7 Aug 2025 00:16 NEW YORK (WAM)Aid agencies warned on Wednesday that most partner organisations providing vital relief across Gaza will likely have to shut down their operations within weeks, unless Israel withdraws its demand that they provide sensitive information about Palestinian development, which also applies to the occupied West Bank, is a result of the Israeli requirement introduced on March 9 impacting international non-governmental organisations (NGOs).'Unless urgent action is taken…most international NGO partners could be de-registered by 9 September or sooner – forcing them to withdraw all international staff and preventing them from providing critical, lifesaving humanitarian assistance to Palestinians,' said UN and partner aid organisations that are known collectively as the Humanitarian Country Team in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT).The UN understands that organisations must now submit, amongst others, details of representatives and all employees in-country, including Palestinian and foreign workers, with full identification and contact foreign worker recommendation requirements, applications must now include marital status and family details, including spouse and children's passport numbers and country of UN agencies still operate in Gaza, working closely with NGO partners to reach the war-torn enclave's most vulnerable people. International NGOs are key as they provide critical support to Palestinian NGOs in the form of supplies, funding and technical support.'Without this cooperation, their operations will be severed, cutting off even more communities from food, medical care, shelter and critical protection services,' said the Humanitarian Country Team, which is overseen by the UN's top aid official in OPT and includes heads of UN agencies and more than 200 local and international NGOs which have not registered under the new system are prohibited from sending any supplies to last month, Israeli authorities rejected repeated requests by 29 of them to ship humanitarian aid to Gaza, citing the organisations as 'not authorised'.'This policy has already prevented the delivery of lifesaving aid including medicine, food, and hygiene items,' the humanitarian collective said. 'This most profoundly affects women, children, older people, and persons with disabilities, further aggravating the risk of being subjected to abuse and exploitation.' In a statement urging Israel to reconsider its demand for sensitive employee information from NGOs, the humanitarian country team insisted that impeding its work violates international law 'when we are receiving daily reports of death by starvation as Gaza faces famine conditions'.
Middle East Eye
2 hours ago
- Middle East Eye
US senator asks tax authority to strip Muslim civil rights organisation of nonprofit status
Republican Senator Tom Cotton called on the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) on Monday to revoke the nonprofit status of the largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organisation in the US, accusing it of providing material support to terrorists. In his letter, Cotton accused the Council on American-Islamic Relations (Cair) of purporting to be 'a civil rights organization protecting the rights of American Muslims' while having 'deep ties to terrorist organisations'. He alleged the organisation was listed as a member of the Muslim Brotherhood's Palestine Committee and that Cair participated in a meeting of Hamas supporters in Philadelphia. 'Tax-exempt status is a privilege, not a right, and it should not subsidize organisations with links to terrorism,' the letter said. Cair denounced the accusations as 'debunked conspiracy theories' in a statement sent to Middle East Eye. New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters "Tom Cotton's baseless demand that the IRS target a nonprofit organization based on debunked conspiracy theories is an un-American political stunt straight from the McCarthy era and it's motivated by the senator's desire to protect the genocidal Israeli government from criticism," the statement said. Cair said it is an independent organisation that has spent over thirty years defending the US constitution, anti-Muslim bigotry and has "opposed injustice both here and abroad". Former Israeli prime minister urges Jewish Americans to bypass Aipac in Washington Read More » 'This is called moral consistency and Senator Cotton should try it, but he better check with his handlers at AIPAC first," Cair said, referring to the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, a pro-Israel lobbying group that has contributed over $230,000 to the senator. This is not the first time Cair has been subject to attacks for its pro-Palestinian advocacy; the organisation is just the latest in a list of pro-Israel campaigns that Cotton has run. In December, the senator introduced a bill in the Senate that sought to eliminate the federal use of the term 'West Bank' and instead implement the use of 'Judea and Samaria', the biblical name for what is now the occupied West Bank, claiming the terminology aligns with Israel's historical and biblical claims to the territory. In November 2024, after the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defence Minister Yoav Gallant on charges of using starvation as a method of warfare, as well as crimes against humanity, plus other charges, Cotton lashed out at the ICC. At the time, Cotton cited a US law that permits the president to use "all means necessary and appropriate" to free Americans or allies detained by the court. Passed in 2002, the American Service-Members' Protection Act, often referred to as the "Hague Invasion Act," was designed to shield US personnel from ICC jurisdiction. Rights groups argue the law aims to intimidate nations that support the ICC treaty. It authorises military action to rescue any American or allied citizen held by the court in The Hague, the Netherlands. 'The ICC is a kangaroo court and Karim Khan is a deranged fanatic,' Cotton wrote in a social media post on X. Khan is the chief prosecutor at the ICC.
Middle East Eye
3 hours ago
- Middle East Eye
Photo of Saudi Arabia's crown prince inside Jeffrey Epstein's mansion fuels criticism online
The New York Times on Tuesday ignited a wave of backlash after revealing a framed photograph of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman displayed inside the New York City mansion of convicted child sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. The article, which takes readers inside the late convicted paedophile's seven-storey Manhattan home, features surveillance cameras positioned above his bed and in adjoining rooms, taxidermied animals, and provocative artwork, including a sculpture of a bride clutching a rope suspended from the ceiling in the atrium. Images from the home of Jeffrey Epstein show cameras in bedrooms and photos of him with: Donald Trump Steve Bannon Bill Clinton Elon Musk Larry Summers Mohammed bin Salman and more As well as memorabilia from Ehud Barak, Woody Allen, Bill Gates, and many others. Gift link 👇🏼 — Leah McElrath (@leahmcelrath) August 5, 2025 The revelation of the crown prince's photograph inside Epstein's mansion has sparked a storm of criticism on social media. Many social media users expressed their lack of surprise, with one remarking on another photograph of Mohammed bin Salman with George Nader, another convicted criminal and serial paedophile. 'Whenever Mohammed Bonesaw isn't orchestrating the murder of journalists (a reference to the Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi) and dissolving their remains in acid, he seems to enjoy posing for photos with pedophiles.' Another person commented, 'Personally, I think this is the least surprising one out of all of them.' New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters Some questioned the public's reaction altogether. 'Is MBS considered a moral leader in any way?' one person asked, while others connected the scandal to Saudi Arabia's silence towards the ongoing war in Gaza, which several states, human rights scholars and institutions now qualify as a genocide. One Reddit user wrote, 'If this is true, it would explain a lot for why there's no coordinated military response to the genocide [in Gaza].' Another post on X added: 'This is why he supports 'Israel'.' Wonder why they're all working for Israel and against their people ? Saudi Arabia's King MBS, Pope, Emirati high level figure, Trump ... with their common pedophile friend Jeffrey Epstein. — MenchOsint (@MenchOsint) August 5, 2025 The criticism escalated as people connected the image to long-standing allegations of Gulf-Israeli collaboration. Sam Youssef, author and editor of American and International Affairs, asked: 'Do you now understand why Arab rulers kneel to Netanyahu and the Mossad?' Others saw the photograph as symbolic of regional betrayal. 'Basically, the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques was being managed by an Israeli agent. That's why Palestinians are helpless today. But not for long,' one person posted. Many expressed disbelief and concern over the Saudi crown prince's apparent proximity to Epstein. But the relationship between Epstein and Mohammed bin Salman isn't new. A year before his death, which was ruled a suicide in 2019, Epstein boasted of his ties to the crown prince during an interview with The New York Times. A 2019 report by The New York Times—Jeffrey Epstein claimed to have known Mohammed bin Salman (MBS), the de facto ruler of Saudi Arabia. During a 2018 interview with journalist James B. Stewart, Epstein gestured to a framed photograph of MBS displayed prominently in his… — Levantine Logic (@SyriaRetold) August 6, 2025 The crown prince was not the only high-profile figure whose image was exposed from inside Epstein's mansion. Framed photos of US President Donald Trump; former President Bill Clinton; Pope John Paul II; Mick Jagger; Elon Musk; Fidel Castro; CEO of DP World, Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem from the United Arab Emirates; and former prime minister of Qatar, Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim bin Jabr al-Thani were also in his home. Framed photograph in Jeffrey Epstein's Manhattan home shows him with the UAE's Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem, the current group chairman & CEO of DP World (X) In 2008, Epstein was convicted in Florida for soliciting prostitution from a minor, serving just 13 months in jail under a controversial plea deal. A decade later, he was arrested again on federal charges of sex trafficking of minors, accused of abusing dozens of underage girls between 2002 and 2005 in his homes in New York and Palm Beach. On 6 July 2019, Epstein was arrested and held at the Metropolitan Correctional Center in New York City while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges. He died in his cell on 10 August 2019. Epstein's death has done little to quell public scrutiny. His connections to influential individuals, including former US presidents, royals, and billionaires, continue to fuel speculation about the extent of his network and whether justice was truly served.
