War crimes US military personnel could face prosecution

Human rights groups and activists who protest continued US support for Israel have until now focused primarily on the flow of US weapons, warning that continuing to send weapons to a state which has been documented using them in probable war crimes makes the US complicit.

- William Christou

However, this week, Human Rights Watch (HRW) highlighted another facet of US military support for Israel: military cooperation and intelligence sharing.

Individual US military personnel who assist Israeli forces in committing war crimes could face criminal prosecution for their actions, the rights group said.

The US has made no secret of its operational support for Israel throughout its 22-month war in Gaza. The US has provided Israel intelligence at various points during its military operations, and also embedded US military forces within Israeli operational planning.

The direct participation of US forces in Israel's military activities in Gaza makes it a party to the conflict - and this would mean those individual American soldiers could be liable for any war crimes committed with their assistance, according to Omar Shakir, the Israel and Palestine director of HRW.

"It goes beyond complicity: the US has directly participated in hostilities. If you played a role in it and the Israeli forces carried out a war crime, you could still be liable for the war crime," he said.