AFSC strongly condemns the U.S. government's latest sanctions targeting three critical Palestinian human rights organizations—Al-Haq, Al Mezan, and the Palestinian Center for Human Rights.
These sanctions were put in place under Executive Order 14203 which calls for sanctions against the International Criminal Court (ICC) and any organization or individual that supports its efforts to investigate Israel’s war crimes. This action is yet another attempt by the Trump administration to punish Palestinians for seeking accountability for violations of their rights, even as they face a genocide in Gaza. It is also a further attack on the ICC and undermines all efforts to uphold international law.
For decades, these human rights organizations have provided essential research and documentation that the international community relies on to monitor Israel’s violations against Palestinians—including military raids, settler violence, home demolitions, extrajudicial executions, abductions, and physical and sexual violence.
While the U.S. government attacks those opposing genocide and apartheid in Palestine, its own complicity in Israeli abuses continues as the U.S. provides more than $30 billion in taxpayer-funded weapons to Israel and blocks accountability efforts before international bodies. Additionally, this action coincides with Israel’s crackdown on civil society and its ongoing threatens to deregister and shut down many Palestinian and international organizations working in the occupied Palestinian territory.
As a Quaker organization working toward a just peace and safety for all people, we will continue to advocate for the rights of Palestinians and all people seeking protection from and accountability for war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide. We urge the United States to reverse this decision and also call on the global community to take meaningful action to end Israel’s ongoing genocide and apartheid policies.