US Exempts Israeli and Its Own High Crimes from Accountability
by Stephen Lendman
Throughout their history, Washington and Israel were never held accountable for endless high crimes of war, against humanity and genocide.
Hegemons make their own rules, doing whatever they please, ignoring rule of law principles with impunity – how America always operates, waging endless wars on humanity, seeking dominance over planet earth, its resources and populations.
Along with NATO, Israel is an appendage of Washington’s imperial agenda, a sort of regional cop on the beat serving US interests and its own – including maliciously harming Palestinians, Gazans most of all, ignoring their fundamental rights, holding them hostage to its viciousness with full US support and encouragement.
As expected on June 1, Washington vetoed a Kuwait-drafted Security Council resolution, denouncing “excessive use of force” against (peaceful) Gazan demonstrators by IDF soldiers.
The Trump regime acted alone – 10 SC member-states voting “yes,” four abstaining (Britain, Ethiopia, the Netherlands and Poland – shamefully in deference to Washington and Israel, short of voting “no.”
Following the US veto, Kuwait’s UN envoy said “(t)he message given by the council today, as it votes against this, is that the occupying power enjoys an exception” to fundamental rule of law principles binding on all nations, adding:
“Why do Palestinians continue to suffer? Why does the international community fail to act? Why does Israel enjoy impunity? Why are all these lives lost and all this blood shed?”
More Palestinian blood was shed on Friday. Volunteer medic Razan Ashraf Najjar was lethally shot in Gaza during another peaceful Great March of Return demonstration, scores more Palestinians injured from live fire, rubber-coated steel bullets and toxic tear gas.
According to Gaza’s Health Ministry Dr. Asraf al-Qedra, Israeli snipers targeted five medical personnel treating wounded Gazans.
Najjar wore a clearly-marked medic vest, lethally shot for doing her job, treating and helping to evacuate wounded Gazans to a field clinic – standing well inside Israel’s border with Gaza, threatening no one.
She was shot in the back, the bullet (reportedly an exploding dum dum one) shattered her heart, likely killing her instantly, other medics with her wounded.
Since Great March of Return demonstrations began over two months ago, two Gazan medics were killed, 223 others injured, at least 29 from live fire.
According to political activist, human rights champion, Palestinian Medical Relief Society head Dr. Mustafa Barghouti, killing Najjar is one of countless Israeli high crimes of war and against humanity, adding:
Gazan medical teams continue treating wounded Palestinians responsibly despite Israeli state terror.
Responding to Washington’s Friday veto, PLO executive committee member Hanan Ashwari called the action clear proof of its “corrupt and blindfolded support to Israel, so that they can ensure Israel’s crimes and violations against an unarmed civilian population remain unpunished, and continue with impunity,” adding:
“This…reckless behavior reflects the morally corrupt American policies and manifests the arrogance of power used by the United States against international principles.”
“This veto is another sharp blow by the United States targeting justice, and the credibility of the international community, represented by the United Nations” – failing to uphold fundamental international law, applied only to victims of US/Israeli viciousness.
The world community consistently fails to hold Washington and Israel accountable for high crimes too egregious to ignore.
It’s why they get away with mass murder and much more – time and again with no end of it in prospect.
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My newest book as editor and contributor is titled "Flashpoint in Ukraine: How the US Drive for Hegemony Risks WW III."
