More than 100 lawyers endorsed the referral, which points to the military, intelligence, and rhetorical support Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has provided to the Israeli government.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, along with several Western leaders, has been providing political and material support to the Israeli government and military over the past five months amid their bombardment of Gaza, resulting in the deaths of more than 30,000 people. However, on Monday, Albanese became the first Western leader to be referred to the International Criminal Court, accused of being an “accessory to genocide.”
Over 100 lawyers backed the referral under Article 15 of the Rome Statute. They argued that Albanese, a member of the Labor Party, along with members of his Cabinet and Parliament, have offered Israel “rhetorical support in their public statements, press conferences, and speeches,” as attorney Sheryn Omeri explained on ABC’s “News Breakfast.”
Omeri highlighted Australia’s aid to Israel, particularly the export of F-35 fighter jet parts and military intelligence through operations at Joint Defense Facility Pine Gap in Australia’s Northern Territory since Israel’s attacks on Gaza began.
Despite recent calls by Albanese for Israel to respect international law, Omeri noted that “between the 7th of October, 2023, and now, there has been very little urging of restraint on Israel, discouraging what the International Court of Justice found to be a plausible case of genocide on the 26th of January.”
The 92-page document compiled by the legal team outlines specific actions by Albanese and other Australian officials, including:
- Freezing $6 million in funding to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East during a humanitarian crisis based on unsubstantiated claims by Israel.
- Providing military aid and approving defense exports to Israel, potentially used by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) during actions with genocidal intent and crimes against humanity.
- Ambiguously deploying an Australian military contingent to the region, with undisclosed location and roles.
- Allowing Australians, explicitly or implicitly, to travel to Israel to join the IDF and participate in attacks on Gaza.
“The Rome Statute includes four modes of individual criminal responsibility, two of which are accessorial,” explained Omeri in a statement.
Albanese, along with U.S. President Joe Biden, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, has repeatedly defended Israel’s actions in Gaza despite expressed genocidal intent in public statements by Israeli leaders.
Biden himself faced a federal lawsuit in January for alleged “complicity in the Israeli government’s unfolding genocide,” a case that is currently progressing through the U.S. appeals process.
