A non-profit organisation has urged the International Criminal Court (ICC) to investigate former US president Joe Biden for fuelling Israel’s genocide against Palestinians in Gaza. And it has highlighted the role of current president Donald Trump too.
Democracy for the Arab World Now (DAWN) isn’t exactly a radical organisation, having previously received ample corporate funding. But it has made the bold decision to submit a 172-page request to the ICC which calls for accountability for Biden, along with his secretary of state Antony Blinken and secretary of defense Lloyd Austin.
It documents Washington’s $17.9bn weapons transfers, intelligence support, and political protection for Israel’s genocidal war crimes. And it claims Biden administration officials did so in full knowledge of their ally’s crimes.
The organisation insisted that the ICC should investigate Biden, Blinken and Austin for:
their accessorial roles in aiding and abetting, as well as intentionally contributing to, Israeli war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza
DAWN doesn’t try to cosy up to Trump either, clearly stating that Trump’s obstruction of justice via sanctions against the ICC prosecutor, along with proposals to ethnically cleanse Gaza, also constitute potential war crimes. Its advocacy director Raed Jarrar stressed that:
Trump isn’t just obstructing justice; he’s trying to burn down the courthouse to prevent anyone from holding Israeli criminals accountable.
The ICC has “solid grounds to investigate”
In DAWN’s press release, it asserted that:
there are solid grounds to investigate Joe Biden, Antony Blinken and Lloyd Austin for complicity in Israel’s crimes.
It added that:
Not only did Biden, Blinken and Secretary Austin ignore and justify the overwhelming evidence of Israel’s grotesque and deliberate crimes, overruling their own staff recommendations to halt weapons transfers to Israel, they doubled down by providing Israel with unconditional military and political support to ensure it could carry out its atrocities.
They were, in short, “aware of how their assistance would be used to commit crimes”.
DAWN also clarified that:
Israel could not have committed without U.S. military and political support.
In particular, the group said:
Their public support, justifying Israeli atrocities, helped ensure popular sympathy for Israeli war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide.
Investigating US officials, meanwhile, would send the message that “no one is above the law“.
DAWN submitted its 172-page communication on 19 January 2025.
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