Amnesty International, the human rights organization, disclosed evidence indicting the Israeli military in a recent war crime incident in Gaza that involved the use of US-made Joint Direct Attack Munitions (JDAM) according to their investigation.
In a statement, Amnesty International reported “distinctive fragments of the munition in the rubble of destroyed homes in central Gaza.” Additionally, they claim that these JDAMs were used in two strikes that resulted in the death of 43 civilians. The organization deduced the bombs’ origin from codes found stamped on the rubble, associated with JDAMs and Boeing, the manufacturer. Substantiating their allegation was the absence of any military objectives at the strike sites.
Agnès Callamard, Secretary General of Amnesty International, commented on these findings pointing out that, “The fact that US-made munitions are being used by the Israeli military in unlawful attacks with deadly consequences for civilians should be an urgent wake-up call to the Biden administration. The US-made weapons facilitated the mass killings of extended families.”
Amnesty International has called for an arms embargo on both Israel and Hamas from the UN Secretary Council. They also urged the International Criminal Court (ICC) to accelerate the ongoing investigation on war crimes in Gaza. Karim A.A. Khan, Chief Prosecutor of the ICC, recently conducted his first visit to Israel and Palestine.
The recent revelations come amid a temporary ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, following a war that has lasted close to two months. This ceasefire agreement resulted in the release of numerous hostages, along with an influx of humanitarian aid. War crime allegations have been leveled against both Israel and Hamas throughout the course of the conflict.
Furthermore, human rights groups such as Oxfam Novib, PAX, and The Rights Forum are challenging military exports to Israel. They are currently seeking to halt the Dutch government’s export of F-35 fighter jet parts to Israel.