U.S. Imposes Sanctions on Three Palestinian Rights Groups for Assisting ICC War Crimes Probe Against Israel

The United States has imposed sanctions on three leading Palestinian human rights organizations for allegedly assisting the International Criminal Court (ICC) in its investigation into alleged war crimes committed by Israel during the Gaza war and its ongoing occupation of Palestinian territories.

The sanctioned organizations are Al-Haq, based in Ramallah; the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR), based in Gaza City; and the Al Mezan Center for Human Rights, also headquartered in Gaza. The U.S. Treasury Department officially added the groups to its sanctions list on Thursday.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated that the organizations were directly involved in facilitating investigations, arrests, and legal proceedings by the ICC against Israeli citizens—without Israel’s consent. "This is why these organizations have been targeted," he said in an official statement.

The sanctions come shortly after the ICC issued arrest warrants against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, over allegations of war crimes in Gaza. The three Palestinian NGOs had reportedly provided key evidence for the case.

Al-Haq has long worked to document Israeli human rights violations in the West Bank and at international forums, while PCHR and Al Mezan have been compiling legal documentation related to the ongoing war in Gaza.

In a joint statement, the three organizations condemned the U.S. sanctions as "deeply unjust, inhumane, illegal, and anti-democratic."

"When our people are facing genocide, imposing sanctions on human rights organizations can only be done by a state that has no respect for international law or humanitarian values," the statement read.