As organizations committed to civil society and open civic space, we, the undersigned, are gravely concerned by the U.S. government's (USG) decision to impose sanctions under Executive Order (EO) 14203 against three leading Palestinian human rights organizations - Al-Haq: Law in the Service of Man (Al-Haq), Al Mezan Center for Human Rights (Al-Mezan), and the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR) - for engaging with the International Criminal Court (ICC) to seek investigations into war crimes committed by Israel in Gaza. These sanctions create a chilling effect on humanitarian and human rights work in Gaza and undermine the abilities of civil society actors to pursue accountability under international law.
They further threaten the civil society infrastructure in Gaza, hinder the documentation of human rights abuses, impede fact-finding missions, and deter legal cooperation with the ICC. If this suppression continues, accountability for the gravest international crimes will erode.
We join the Sept. 4 response of Volker Türk, Chief of the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), who unequivocally called on the United States to "withdraw immediately these sanctions," warning that they pose a dire threat to independent civil society organizations (CSOs) engaged in essential accountability work. These calls were echoed by civil society and legal organizations.
This escalation - from sanctioning ICC individuals to now targeting organizations and UN officials - infuses political reprisals into the international justice and accountability framework. It deters organizations worldwide from pursuing accountability due to the fear of retaliation, creating a chilling effect on humanitarian and human rights work, where protection is most needed.
We urge the USG to immediately rescind the sanctions against Al-Haq, Al-Mezan, and PCHR.
Signatories:
- A New Policy
- American Civil Liberties Union
- American Council for Judaism
- American Friends Service Committee (AFSC)
- Amnesty International USA
- Ben and Jerry's Foundation
- CAIR-WA (Council on American-Islamic Relations, Washington State Chapter)
- Center for Civilians in Conflict (CIVIC)
- Center for Constitutional Rights
- Center for Economic and Policy Research (CEPR)
- Center for Jewish Nonviolence (CJNV)
- Charity & Security Network
- Churches for Middle East Peace
- CIDSE - International Family of Catholic Social Justice Organisations
- CIVICUS
- CODEPINK
- Confinium Strategies
- Decolonize Sudan
- Defence for Children International DCI
- Defending Rights & Dissent
- Democracy for the Arab World Now (DAWN)
- DIAKONIA
- Diana's List
- Dominican Sisters of Sparkill
- Dorchester People for Peace (DPP)
- Ensaaf
- European Legal Support Center (ELSC)
- Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA)
- Foundation for Middle East Peace
- Friends Committee on National Legislation (FCNL)
- Funding Freedom
- HEART to Grow
- Historians for Peace and Democracy (HPAD)
- Human Rights First
- Human Rights Funders Network (HRFN)
- Human Rights Watch (HRW)
- IfNotNow Movement
- Jewish Voice for Peace
- Just Foreign Policy
- Kenya Human Rights Commission
- KinderUSA
- Kolibri Foundation
- MADRE
- Maine Coalition for Palestine
- Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns (MOGC)
- Massachusetts Peace Action (MAPA)
- MedGlobal
- MENA Rights Group
- Middle East Children's Alliance (MECA)
- Middle East Democracy Center (MEDC)
- Minnesota Peace Project
- MPower Change Action Fund
- Muslim Civic Coalition
- Muslim Legal Fund of America (MLFA)
- Muslim Public Affairs Council (MPAC)
- National Lawyers Guild - Bay Area Chapter
- Nonviolence International
- Oxfam America 59. Palestine Legal
- Pax Christi International
- Peace Action
- Presbyterian Church (USA), Office of Public Witness
- Project South
- Rabbis for Ceasefire (R4C)
- Regenerative Economies Organizing Collaborative (REO)
- ReThinking Foreign Policy (RTFP)
- rochester, minnesota franciscan community
- RootsAction
- Sagner Family Foundation
- Statewatch
- Terre des hommes Italia (TDH IT)
- The Carter Center
- The Episcopal Church
- The Palestinian Assembly for Liberation (PAL)
- The Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft (QI)
- United Against Inhumanity (UAI)
- United for Peace & Justice (UFPJ)
- Western States Legal Foundation (WSLF)
- World BEYOND War
- Zakat Foundation of America
