A group of domestic and international lawyers, including at least 20 lawyers working in the Biden administration, will call on President Joe Biden to cut off military aid to Israel, arguing that its actions in Gaza are inconsistent with US and international humanitarian law.
The lawyers plan to send a letter in the coming days to US Attorney General Merrick Garland and the administration’s General Counsel outlining their case.
In the letter, seen by POLITICO, the lawyers argue that Israel may have violated US laws such as the Arms Export Control Act and the Leahy Laws, as well as the Geneva Conventions, which prohibit disproportionate attacks on civilian populations.
The group drafting the letter includes current lawyers from the Department of Homeland Security and the State Department. While the letter is still circulating for signatures, more than 90 lawyers have so far signed the letter, including lawyers from the Departments of Justice, Labour, and Energy, the European Commission, and the private sector.
According to POLITICO, the letter is the latest sign of dissent within the White House over Israel policy.
Over the weekend, Reuters reported that several senior US officials said in an internal memo to Secretary of State Antony Blinken that they doubted the reliability of Israeli assurances that US-supplied weapons would be used in accordance with international law.
In February, more than 800 officials in the US and abroad signed an open letter opposing their government’s support for Israel’s war in Gaza.
Advocates argue that officials have a duty to provide advice free of “inappropriate political manipulation”, citing as examples of violations the indiscriminate bombing of the besieged territory with high civilian casualties, attacks on aid convoys, and the shelling of schools and hospitals.
“The law is clear and consistent with the majority of Americans who believe that the United States should halt arms sales to Israel until it stops its military operation in Gaza,” the letter said, citing polls showing that most Biden supporters want an arms embargo.
The letter also calls on the Justice Department to investigate whether any US citizens serving in the Israeli military have committed war crimes that could be prosecuted under US law.
A Justice Department official who signed the letter said, ‘This is a moment when the US government has violated its own laws and policies. The administration may see silence or a handful of resignations, but they really don’t realise the extent of grassroots discontent and opposition,” said the Justice Department official who signed the letter.
