DeepSummary
The episode discusses the legal case against the Biden administration for enabling Israel's genocide in Gaza. It covers South Africa's historic suit against Israel at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) for committing genocide, and the potential consequences if Israel is found guilty. The episode also delves into a separate lawsuit filed by the Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR) against President Biden, Secretary Blinken, and Secretary Austin for their failure to prevent and complicity in the genocide.
Attorney Catherine Gallagher from CCR explains the details of both cases, arguing that Israel's actions and statements indicate an intention to destroy Palestinians in Gaza. She highlights the significance of South Africa's case and the potential impact of an ICJ ruling on Israel and countries supporting it. The episode examines the role of the U.S. judge presiding over the case and U.S. laws related to preventing genocide.
The discussion explores the broader implications of the U.S. ignoring international law and enabling Israel's actions in Gaza. Gallagher warns that it could undermine the entire international legal order and lead to global lawlessness if powerful countries can violate international laws with impunity.
Key Episodes Takeaways
- The International Court of Justice (ICJ) is deliberating on South Africa's case against Israel for committing genocide in Gaza.
- The Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR) has filed a separate lawsuit against the Biden administration for enabling Israel's actions in Gaza.
- An ICJ ruling against Israel could have significant legal and diplomatic consequences for Israel and countries supporting its actions.
- The U.S. has a history of shielding Israel from international consequences and may defy any ICJ rulings, undermining the international legal order.
- The cases highlight the broader issue of powerful countries violating international laws with impunity, leading to global lawlessness.
- The outcome could impact the credibility and enforcement of international laws and human rights principles.
- Israel's defiant stance and contradictory statements suggest it may not comply with any ICJ rulings.
- The cases represent a critical moment for the protection of humanity and the principles underpinning international law.
Top Episodes Quotes
- “If it is willing to take the measures that you just described and to buck international law as blatantly as it would be demanded if the ICJ were to order a ceasefire, if the United States were to say, well, sorry, we're going to continue to rush 155 millimeter artillery worth $106,000,000 to Israel, which it did the same day it did not issue the veto against the ceasefire resolution or send tank munitions worth $150,000,000 without going to Congress, which it did on December 29, the same day that South Africa filed the application at the International Court of Justice. If it continues this behavior of aiding and abetting a genocide, then the United States is making clear that it, too, is a pariah state.“ by Catherine Gallagher
- “We are at a critical moment for humanity and for the principles that undergird international law, which are supposed to be about the protection of humanity.“ by Catherine Gallagher
- “So international law really needs at this moment to be given effect, or else we are in a point of true lawlessness, and it will extend far beyond the occupied palestinian territory in Israel, or even far beyond what the United States has done in black sites over the years of the war on terror. It really will be a lawlessness that will be global.“ by Catherine Gallagher
- “Nobody will stop us, not the Hague, not the axis of evil, and not anybody else.“ by Benjamin Netanyahu
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Episode Information
Intercepted
The Intercept
1/17/24
A panel of judges at the International Court of Justice in The Hague has entered deliberations in the preliminary phase of South Africa’s historic suit against Israel, charging it with carrying out a genocide against the Palestinians of Gaza. While a final ruling in the case could take years, the judges will rule on whether to order a halt to continued Israeli military actions pending a trial.
This week on Intercepted, Katherine Gallagher, a senior staff attorney at the Center for Constitutional Rights, discusses the ICJ case as well as a lawsuit CCR has filed against President Joe Biden, Secretary of State Antony Blinken, and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin for the support and failure to prevent genocide in Gaza. Arguments will begin next week in federal court in California.
Gallagher, Jeremy Scahill, and Murtaza Hussain discuss what a ruling in South Africa’s favor would mean for Israel’s U.S.-backed war against Gaza and how the U.S. may try to shield Israel from international consequences, as it has done throughout history. They also examine the history of the U.S. judge who is currently president of the ICJ, as well as U.S. laws that require American officials to take actions to prevent, not enable, genocide, including one that was sponsored by then-Sen. Biden.
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