Netanyahu is right: the war in Gaza is a “clash between barbarism and civilization”

The spectacle of a heated meeting with Benjamin Netanyahu, accompanied by thunderous applause and a standing ovation from his obsequious servants in the US Congress, was truly something to behold. Here they were: two of the world’s leading self-proclaimed “democracies” openly and shamelessly embracing and celebrating their mutual criminality and systematic dismantling of international law, while denigrating the common decency and courage of many of their own citizens and the near-universal opinion of humanity on the question of Palestine.

Some 146 countries now formally recognize the state of Palestine, making the United States and a handful of close allies the outliers in their refusal. What could possibly go wrong when it comes to freedom, justice, and nationhood, as these ideal standards are being distorted and reimposed on—or rather, against—the rest of the world? So much for “a decent respect to the opinions of mankind,” as famously declared in the U.S. Declaration of Independence.

Netanyahu’s speech to the joint session of Congress came less than a week after the International Court of Justice (ICJ) issued its advisory opinion, at the request of the United Nations General Assembly, on Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territories.

The tribunal concluded what everyone has long known, and its judgment is not enforceable. Still, it is useful to have its decision recorded as part of a large body of nearly unanimous international legal statements on the status of Palestine.

The ICJ concluded: Israel’s continued presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT), including East Jerusalem, is unlawful; it is obliged to cease all new settlement activity and to evacuate all illegal settlers from the OPT; Israel has an obligation to make reparation for the harm caused to all natural and legal persons involved in the OPT; all states and international organizations are obliged not to recognize Israel’s unlawful presence in the OPT and to work to end its presence there.

An immediate legal consequence of the ICJ’s ruling on Israel’s ongoing destruction of Gaza is that it cannot be interpreted as an act of self-defence but rather of illegal occupation. Predictably, Washington denounced the court’s ruling. The Knesset, Israel’s parliament, voted to pass legislation opposing the establishment of a Palestinian state as an “existential danger”. It is interesting to note which side is actually suffering thousands of deaths month after month in what amounts to a deliberate policy of depopulation.

In a separate case, the ICJ has already ruled that Israel has a “plausible” case of genocide to answer in Gaza and is currently examining the evidence, arguments and counterarguments. Francesca Albanese, the UN special rapporteur on human rights in the Palestinian territories, concluded that Israel’s conduct in Gaza meets the “threshold” of genocide under international law.

Karim Khan, chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC), has asked a panel of its own judges to issue arrest warrants for Netanyahu, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, as well as Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar and two other senior Hamas officials for war crimes and crimes against humanity.

These lengthy legal proceedings have been further delayed and complicated by blatant interference – legal and illegal – by Israel, the US and Britain, among other Western allies. Members of the US Congress have openly threatened sanctions against the ICC’s chief prosecutor and his staff. Other, more covert threats have been made, prompting his office to issue an unprecedented public statement in May calling for an end to what it called intimidation of his staff and warning that such threats could amount to an offence under international law.

Such intimidation goes back years. According to the UK Guardian, Yossi Cohen, the former head of Mossad, Israel’s foreign intelligence agency, had previously threatened Khan’s predecessor, Fatou Bensouda, to drop an investigation into alleged Israeli war crimes and crimes against humanity in the occupied Palestinian territories, well before the current Gaza conflict.

Interestingly, neither Israel nor the US recognizes the jurisdiction of the ICC. In fact, the US has a law that has been ironically called the “Hague Invasion Act,” allowing the US president to order the use of force against the ICC in any detention of US officials and military personnel.

One reason for the delay in the ICC judges’ decision on whether or not to issue arrest warrants for Netanyahu and Gallant is that the British government filed a belated objection to the chief prosecutor’s request for a warrant, thus ensuring that Netanyahu would not have an arrest warrant hanging over his head when he made his speech before the US Congress. While the current optics are bad enough for America’s global standing, giving a hero’s welcome to a suspected war criminal would have been far worse.

The British objection was lodged under Rishi Sunak’s Conservative government. Before the new Labour prime minister, Keir Starmer, took office, he had hinted that the objection would be dropped. Clearly, the purpose of helping Washington and Netanyahu avoid embarrassment was served. But now there is Israeli news that Starmer’s government will continue to lodge the objection anyway.

Israel’s war on Gaza would not have been possible without the US’s near-unconditional diplomatic support and massive military supply. This makes the US fully complicit – along with a handful of Western allies, including Germany – if any case of war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide is upheld under international law.

It can be noted that Netanyahu is now the first world leader to address a joint session of Congress four times, surpassing the previous record held jointly by him and Winston Churchill.

Netanyahu told Congress that the war in Gaza is a “clash between barbarism and civilization.” Indeed! When Mahatma Gandhi was asked what he thought of Western “civilization,” his answer was, “It would be a great idea.”

By Alex Lo, a columnist for the South China Morning Post since 2012, covering major issues affecting Hong Kong and the rest of China. A journalist for 25 years, he has worked for several publications in Hong Kong and Toronto as a reporter and news editor. He has also taught journalism at the University of Hong Kong.