The Hague: A team of Australian lawyers has formally referred Prime Minister Anthony Albanese to the International Criminal Court (ICC), accusing him of being an “accessory to genocide” in the Gaza Strip. This historic move marks the first time a leader of a Western nation has been referred to the ICC under Article 15 of the Rome Statute.
Led by King’s Counsel Sheryn Omeri, the legal team from Birchgrove Legal spent months compiling evidence to support their claim against Albanese. The 92-page document, endorsed by over one hundred Australian lawyers and barristers, was submitted to the Office of ICC Prosecutor Karim Khan KC on Monday.
The dossier alleges that Albanese and several other members of the Australian Cabinet and Parliament, including Foreign Minister Wong, have been complicit in actions contributing to the dire situation in Gaza. It accuses Canberra of freezing $6 million in funding to the UN aid agency operating in Gaza, providing military aid and approving defense exports to Israel, and ambiguously deploying an Australian military contingent to the region.
Albanese swiftly dismissed the case, stating that the legal team lacked credibility and that misinformation had been disseminated about the situation. Despite his dismissal, Birchgrove Legal stands firm, urging the ICC Prosecutor to investigate the actions outlined in their dossier thoroughly.
The allegations come amidst ongoing Israeli aggression against Gaza, which has resulted in a staggering death toll of 30,534 and left 71,920 others injured. The UN reports that 85% of Gaza’s population has been displaced internally, with critical shortages of food, water, and medicine, while 60% of the enclave’s infrastructure has been damaged or destroyed.
Israel faces accusations of genocide at the International Court of Justice, with an interim ruling in January ordering Tel Aviv to cease genocidal acts and ensure the provision of humanitarian assistance to civilians in Gaza, which so far has gone unheeded as relentless Israeli attacks on Gaza claim the lives of hundreds of Palestinians daily.
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