US officials could be brought before the ICC for obstruction of justice
US officials taking part in attacks on the ICC in defence of Israel are obstructing justice and could face charges in the future, former UN Human Rights Official Craig Mokhiber says.
Mokhiber told Al Jazeera that both Biden and Trump administrations had allowed Israel to act with impunity on Gaza and Palestine, with the Trump administration going so far as to arrest people in the US “simply for criticising an oppressive foreign regime, Israel because it’s committing genocide and apartheid”.
The arrest of Mahmoud Khalil was emblematic of a broader attack on human rights, he said, adding that these developments should be seen within the context of attacks by the US on international institutions for protecting and promoting human rights.
“The Trump administration has already attacked the ICC which is a crime under international law, equivalent to obstructing justice, over which the ICC itself has jurisdiction and could prosecute US officials and Israeli officials for its obstruction of justice.”
Israeli strike on southern Lebanon kills one person
A Lebanese citizen has been killed in an Israeli air strike on a vehicle in the town of Borj al-Mloukin, Lebanon’s Health Ministry says.
The vehicle targeted by an Israeli drone had two occupants, according to the state-run National News Agency.
The Israeli army, meanwhile, said it targeted a Hezbollah operative in the attack in the Kfar Kila municipality.
A fragile ceasefire has been in place in Lebanon since November, ending more than a year of cross-border warfare between Israel and Hezbollah, which escalated into a full-scale conflict in September.
Lebanese authorities have reported nearly 1,100 Israeli violations of the truce, including the deaths of at least 85 people and injuries to more than 280.
Hamas condemns US, Europe decision to block Al-Aqsa TV
Hamas has condemned a joint European American decision to block Al-Aqsa TV via satellite channel, calling it an “attempt to block the Palestinian narrative”.
“The unjust decision represents a direct targeting of free Palestinian media that conveys our people’s suffering and the crimes of the occupation,” the group said in a statement. “We consider this step a blatant violation of media freedom and our people’s legitimate right to convey their voice to the world.”
