Zeynep ConkarOver 4,000 American taxpayers have taken an unprecedented step in international law, filing a complaint against their own government for complicity in Israel’s genocide in Gaza.
The case, an expanded and amended legal filing before the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR), marks the first time US citizens have collectively sought accountability for Washington’s role in atrocities committed against Palestinians.
The complaint, submitted on October 7 by Taxpayers Against Genocide (TAG), the National Lawyers Guild International Committee (NLG), and a group of Palestinian-American petitioners, argues that both the Biden and Trump administrations, along with Congress, have directly contributed to crimes against humanity in Gaza.
The filing sends a message to activists worldwide that they don’t have to wait for politicians to act justly; but they can demand justice themselves, according to Tariq Ra’ouf, Palestinian-American complainant.
The human rights advocate explained witnessing “the destruction of entire cities and towns live on our phones”, as the Israeli military bombed hospitals, churches, mosques, and apartment buildings, led him to take action.
“We’ve seen with our own eyes what our tax dollars are going towards, and we’re through with allowing our government to use our hard earned money to commit war crimes instead of providing us the resources, benefits and tools we need to help our communities thrive,” Raouf tells TRT World.
“Our nations’ priorities are with war and destruction, and filing this complaint at the IACHR is the only way we can think of to hold our leaders accountable for this horrific prioritisation of violence over humanity,” he adds.
A historic lawsuit ‘born out of grief and outrage’
Running nearly 200 pages with annexes, the lawsuit accuses the US of violating its binding obligations under the American Declaration of the Rights and Duties of Man.
It was, as its authors describe, “born out of grief, outrage, and a refusal to accept that human life can be erased with impunity.”
TAG is the grassroots movement behind the initiative, representing thousands of Americans who say their tax dollars have funded mass killing, famine, and the destruction of Gaza’s health system.
“What has pushed us, as working-class taxpayers in the US, to take this step is the fact that our elected officials have consistently chosen to illegally use our tax dollars to fund the genocide in Palestine, while failing to invest in the public services such as healthcare that we need at home,” says Seth Donnelly, co-founder of TAG.
The movement hopes that the rest of the world takes note that thousands of US taxpayers are now rising to challenge the US government, which Donnelly describes as “the source of the problem of this genocide.”
“The evidence of US complicity and participation in the genocide in Palestine is overwhelming. A ruling against the US would send a powerful signal across the Americas and beyond that no nation, not even one as dominant as the US, stands above the law,” Donnelly tells TRT World.
The petition is led by Palestinian-American human rights attorney Huwaida Arraf, known for co-founding the Freedom Flotilla Coalition and Maria Kari, the executive director of Project TAHA.
Among the other Palestinian-American petitioners are Susan Abulhawa, an acclaimed author and human rights advocate with firsthand experience in Gaza; Monadel Herzallah, co-founder of the US Palestinian Community Network, who lost 44 relatives in Israeli genocide; Hadil El Wahidy, a business owner and community leader who lost more than 100 family members; and Tarik Kanaana, TAG’s co-founder.
Seeking accountability beyond US borders
Earlier this month, Hamas and Israel reached the first phase of a US-proposed Gaza deal to cease hostilities and return all remaining Israeli captives in exchange for about 2,000 Palestinians held illegally in Israeli prisons.
Over the past two years of the Israeli genocide, multiple ceasefires have been announced, only to quickly collapse as Israel resumed air strikes and artillery fire within days, if not hours.
The latest ceasefire has so far proven equally fragile. On Tuesday, Israeli forces killed at least seven Palestinians in violation of the ceasefire agreement.
The petitioners of the lawsuit had already requested that the IACHR adopt “precautionary measures” to accelerate consideration of their case, citing the urgency of stopping killings in Gaza.
Members of TAG hope the ceasefire can lead to a lasting end to Israel’s bombardment and siege.
However, Donnelly adds that, no matter what happens in the coming days and weeks, the fact remains that the US government funded and drove this genocide for two years.
“US officials need to be held accountable. Without such accountability, the problem of US participation in crimes against humanity will continue and expand, with impunity, as it has been doing so throughout my whole life."
“It is only when we address this root problem that we will be able to stand in effective solidarity with the people of Palestine and other peoples oppressed by US imperialism,” Donnelly adds.
While the IACHR Commission lacks criminal jurisdiction over US officials, it can determine whether Washington is violating its international human rights obligations.
Though nonbinding, such findings exert significant political and moral pressure on governments. For example, in 2014 the IACHR ruled that Mexico had failed to protect 43 Ayotzinpa students, a finding that amplified international scrutiny and fuelled ongoing domestic and global campaigns for justice.
Such a ruling, they argue, could carry significant political weight.
According to Raouf, a ruling in taxpayers’ favour would mean that “the average US citizen has more power than they ever thought possible, and show the world what happens when normal everyday people stand up against these systemic injustices”.
“It would also show the world that the US imperial machine is not immune to accountability, and that as a world we can come together to fight a system that has harmed a vast percentage of the global majority,” Raouf explains.
The complaint has drawn a wide range of support from national and grassroots organisations, including the Centre for Constitutional Rights, Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), US Palestinian Community Network (USPCN), and Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP), among others.
The Black Alliance for Peace, CODEPINK, Global Exchange, and chapters of the Palestinian Youth Movement have also endorsed the filing, alongside prominent individuals such as Dr. Cornel West, Dr. Jill Stein, and Mahmoud Khalil.
For many of those involved, the lawsuit is a part of a wider awakening among people worldwide who have grown disillusioned with governments’ narratives about Palestine.
“On its own, this lawsuit is immense, but when you look at it through a lens of global solidarity, it represents just one cog in a machine fighting for freedom and liberation,” says Ra’ouf.
“Our group would not be nearly as powerful or impactful were it not for the thousands of Americans who have finally woken up to the lies they’ve been fed by our government.”
The petitioners say they refuse to let complicity go unchallenged, hoping that the IACHR’s recognition of Washington’s violations will be a step toward justice.
For them, the struggle in Palestine is part of a wider fight against the global systems that keep the powerful protected while the most vulnerable continue to suffer.
