The Elders, a group founded by Nelson Mandela in 2007, has issued a statement saying that all states providing arms to Israel must suspend arms transfers.
This, the group said, is in response to “systematic violations” of international humanitarian law in Gaza and across the occupied West Bank.
It added that the U.S, as Israel’s closest ally and its biggest arms’ provider, should be leading the way.
“We are deeply concerned that the Biden administration continues to approve arms transfers, appearing to accept Israel’s assurances on compliance with its legal obligations as credible, despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary,” the statement read.
According to the Elders, Israel’s obstruction of humanitarian assistance into Gaza is unlawful and is causing unprecedented levels of catastrophic hunger, with famine in northern Gaza now imminent.
Separately, three former Supreme Court justices joined more than 600 members of the British legal profession in calling for the UK government to halt arms sales to Israel.
“The provision of military assistance and material to Israel may render the UK complicit in genocide as well as serious breaches of International Humanitarian Law,” the judges and barristers said in a 17-page letter.
The letter added, “Customary international law recognises the concept of ‘aiding and assisting’ an international wrongful act.”
In the letter, they also called on the government to secure a permanent ceasefire, take measure to ensure aid deliveries and impose sanctions against individuals who have made statements inciting genocide against Palestinians.
Meanwhile, the current situation in Gaza is dire.
As of Thursday, April 4, 2024, 33,037 people have been confirmed killed by the health ministry, with 75,668 injured.
More than 60 percent of housing units have been destroyed, along with 392 education facilities, 123 ambulances and 184 mosques.
The UN says about 1.7 million people, or 75 percent of the population, have been displaced since October 7, 2024.
More than one million displaced are in Rafah on Gaza’s southernmost fringe close to the boundary with Egypt.
The Integrated Food-Security Phase Classification says famine is imminent and likely to occur by May in northern Gaza and could spread across the enclave by July.
According to relief group, Oxfam, the amount of food available to people in the north of the besieged strip is less than 12 percent of the recommended daily 2,100 calorie intake needed per person.
The international organisation disclosed that it made the calculation using demographic data.
It also found that food deliveries allowed into Gaza since the war began in October amounted to an average of just 41 percent of the daily calories needed per person.
Unprecedented Move
Michael Mansfield, a British former judge on the Russell Tribunal on Palestine, noted that the letter sent by hundreds of judges and lawyers urging the UK government to stop arms sales to Israel is “unprecedented.”
“I have never seen such a number of lawyers coming together to make a point over the illegality of actions of any state,” Mansfield said, referring to Israel’s war conduct in Gaza.
He added, “This is not a rant but a well-constructed and constructive argument.”
Mansfield also called for public displays of opposition to the war on Gaza.
“People marching in the street is important to show solidarity for Palestinians but they want actions, as much as we want to prevent more deaths through starvation,” he said.
Guy Goodwin-Gill, emeritus professor for international refugee law at the University of Oxford, who is among the 600 signatories of the 17-page letter addressed to the British government, stated, “There is a serious risk of genocide, as the International Court of Justice has found.”
“If the UK, with that knowledge in mind, carries on exporting arms to Israel, there is a risk that those arms will be used in the conduct of aggressive activities and in the conduct of genocide,” he said.
“It’s the risk that is important and the risk must be taken into account now,” Goodwin-Gill averred.
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