The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, today called on the Trump administration to reverse “lawless” sanctions imposed on Palestinian human rights organizations that have provide evidence to the International Criminal Court’s (ICC) investigation into war crimes committed by Israeli occupation forces in Gaza.
The U.S. sanctions target several Palestinian rights groups, Al-Haq, Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR) and Al-Mezan Center for Human Rights, adding them to the Department of the Treasury’s “Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons List.” The U.S. accuses them of “undermining peace efforts” because of their cooperation with the ICC’s investigation into Israeli war crimes in Gaza and the West Bank.
In a statement, CAIR National Deputy Director Edward Ahmed Mitchell said:
“The State Department must start serving the American people and stop acting like an agent of the Israeli Foreign Ministry. These lawless sanctions represent a shameful attempt to silence Palestinian human rights organizations whose only offense is providing evidence of the Israeli government’s crimes to the International Criminal Court. Secretary Rubio’s misuse of U.S. sanctions sends the message that the State Department will throw out American law and international law to serve the whims of the Israeli government. This ‘Israel First’ madness must end.”
Human rights watchdogs, including Amnesty International, have condemned the U.S. move as a blatant attack on civil society and an affront to international justice. Amnesty stated that the sanctions “mark a new low” in the U.S. government’s continued efforts to shield Israel from legal scrutiny.
CAIR is calling on the Trump administration to immediately reverse the sanctions and reaffirm its stated commitment to human rights and the independence of international judicial bodies.
Earlier today, CAIR called on Google to immediately cancel a reported $45 million advertising campaign promoting Israeli government narratives on its platforms, including YouTube, amid Israel’s genocide in Gaza.
CAIR Called on all tech platforms to take similarly reject pro-genocide propaganda.
Israeli terror forces have slaughtered more than 64,000 people in Gaza, mostly women and children. Even Israeli data shows that 83 percent of those slaughtered were civilians. Out of 376 malnutrition-related deaths as a result of the Israeli-induced famine, 134 are children. New data from a United Nations committee showing that Israel has wounded more than 40,000 children in Gaza — resulting in at least 21,000 children being permanently disabled.
Yesterday, CAIR sent a letter to America’s largest media outlets calling on them to consistently broadcast video of the Israeli government’s ongoing destruction of Gaza City, including the killing dozens of children on a daily basis.
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CONTACT: CAIR National Deputy Director Edward Ahmed Mitchell, 404-285-9530, e-Mitchell@cair.com; CAIR Government Affairs Director Robert McCaw, 202-742-6448, rmccaw@cair.com; CAIR National Communications Director Ibrahim Hooper, 202-744-7726, ihooper@cair.com; CAIR National Communications Manager Ismail Allison, 202-770-6280, iallison@cair.com