Five Palestinians have filed a lawsuit against the United States State Department, accusing it of failing to curtail military assistance to the Israeli military despite its alleged involvement in egregious human rights violations in Gaza.
The lawsuit seeks to halt aid to the specific units implicated in these violations, reports Al Jazeera.
The case was filed on Tuesday (17 December), under the Leahy Law, a US legal framework established in the 1990s.
The law permits the State Department to restrict military aid to foreign units involved in gross violations of human rights, such as extrajudicial killings and torture. The plaintiffs argue that the State Department has failed to enforce the law effectively, particularly since the escalation of hostilities in Gaza on 7 October 2023, which they describe as marked by unprecedented human rights abuses.
The plaintiffs include five Palestinians residing in Gaza, the occupied West Bank, and the United States.
One of the plaintiffs, a teacher from Gaza who goes by the pseudonym Amal Gaza, disclosed in a statement that she has been displaced seven times since the onset of the conflict.
She further revealed that 20 members of her family have been killed in Israeli attacks.
Amal expressed hope that restricting military aid to Israeli units implicated in severe violations could significantly alleviate the suffering endured by her and her family.
Since October 2023, Israel has been conducting relentless bombing campaigns and ground operations in Gaza, which have reportedly claimed the lives of over 45,000 Palestinians.
The United Nations and leading human rights organisations worldwide have accused the Israeli military of committing war crimes, including genocide.
Amal Gaza stated: "The unimaginable loss and suffering my family and I have endured could be significantly reduced if the United States ceased its military support to the Israeli units responsible for grave human rights abuses."
When approached for comment by Al Jazeera, the US State Department declined, citing its policy of not commenting on pending legal matters.
