Good on Australia! Canada lawyers next, get Trudeau on the list
Australia’s PM referred to ICC for ‘complicity in genocide’ over support for Israel
A group of Australian lawyers have accused Prime Minister Anthony Albanese of being an “accessory to genocide in Gaza” and asked the International Criminal Court (ICC) to launch an investigation.
The request, endorsed by some 100 Australian lawyers, outlined five actions for the ICC to consider and investigate.
They include decisions by Albanese and his government to freeze $6m in aid to UNRWA, provide military aid to Israel, deploying Australian troops to the region, and permitting Australians to travel to Israel and join the country’s military offensive in Gaza.
This is the full press release about Australian PM @AlboMP today referred to ICC accused of complicity to genocide. Including info on the lawyers backing it and what they hope to achieve https://t.co/aWsgPUu9Wd pic.twitter.com/HNN5GR8nqn
— Antoinette Lattouf (@antoinette_news) March 4, 2024
Protesters rally in Chile calling on president to break ties with Israel
Protesters in the Chilean capital Santiago rallied outside the Israeli Embassy on Monday in solidarity with Palestine. They held signs with slogans calling on President Gabriel Boric to “break ties with the state of Israel” and saying, “Out with the Zionist embassy”.
Chile is home to the largest Palestinian community outside the Middle East, numbering as many as half a million people, as well as the third-largest Jewish community in South America after Argentina and Brazil.
Demonstrators block the street in front of the Israeli Embassy
A demonstrator holds a sign reading, ‘Israel embassy out
NGO slams shrinking civic space in Palestine amid war on Gaza
The CIVICUS Monitor has expressed concern over shrinking space for civic freedoms in Palestine, citing “alarming” restrictions on humanitarian aid services, cuts in funding for civil society, as well as the killing of aid workers and journalists.
“The devastating death toll in Gaza affecting unarmed civilians, aid workers, journalists and media workers paints a harrowing picture of the dire circumstances endured by countless innocent individuals trapped in the crossfire of Israel’s relentless bombardment, amidst what is fast becoming one of the worst humanitarian crises in recent global history,” said Sylvia Mbataru, Middle East and North Africa researcher for CIVICUS.
“At this juncture, the international community must be compelled to call for an immediate ceasefire, scale up humanitarian aid efforts, and firmly hold to account all parties responsible for human rights violations,” Mbataru said.
CIVICUS monitors civic freedoms across the world.
US says humanitarian situation in Gaza ‘simply intolerable’
US Department of State spokesman Matthew Miller says that the US is focused on increasing and sustaining aid in Gaza “through as many channels as possible”.
“People are desperate for food, for water, for medicine. Parents are facing impossible choices about how to feed their children. Many don’t know when there next meal will come or if it will come at all. The situation is simply intolerable,” he told reporters.
Miller also referenced the US military airdropping “38,000 ready-to-eat” meals in Gaza in cooperation with the Jordanian military on Saturday. He said the move was a “first in a series” of humanitarian air drops that the US will be conducting in Gaza. “But I want to be clear, these airdrops are intended to supplement, not replace, aid through other mechanisms,” he said, adding that the US was also hoping to establish a “maritime assistance corridor”.
Since October 7, the US has vetoed three UN Security Council resolutions calling for a humanitarian pause or immediate ceasefire in Israel’s war on Gaza.
The U.S. is focused on getting aid distributed to Gaza through as many channels as possible.
We are continuing to push for a temporary ceasefire through a hostage agreement that would allow a massive surge of aid into Gaza. pic.twitter.com/2MTqVKR9ik
— Matthew Miller (@StateDeptSpox) March 4, 2024
