Pro-Palestinian activists protested on Tuesday outside the hotel where Israel’s Defence Minister, Yoav Gallant, is staying during his visit to Washington. “You can’t hide; you’re committing genocide,” they chanted. The protesters held placards calling for an end to the war in Gaza and the cessation of US support for the Israeli occupation.
As Gallant arrived for a meeting with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Monday, demonstrators called for the Israeli official to be arrested and put on trial for the genocide of Palestinian civilians in Gaza. In advance of his trip, Gallant stated that his meetings with Biden administration officials would include discussions on moving to the “third phase” of the Israeli offensive in Gaza, which he described as being of great importance.
In October, approximately three weeks after the start of the aggression on Gaza, Gallant outlined the three-phase battle plan. It began with a period of intensive air strikes on alleged Hamas targets and infrastructure, followed by an intermediate period of ground operations aimed at eliminating pockets of resistance. What followed was the destruction of civilian infrastructure and killing or wounding of more than 120,000 Palestinians, most of them women and children.
READ: Belgium police disperse pro-Palestine protest
The third phase, said Gallant at the time, would involve establishing a “new security reality” for the citizens of Israel” by achieving the declared goals of dismantling Hamas’s military capabilities and its ability to govern in Gaza.
It was Gallant who gave a clear indication of Israel’s intention to commit genocide when he said on 9 October last year: “I have ordered a complete siege on the Gaza Strip. There will be no electricity, no food, no fuel, everything is closed. We are fighting human animals and we act accordingly.”
The chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court is seeking arrest warrants for Gallant and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on charges including the use of starvation as a weapon of war. They deny the charges. Israel also stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice.
READ: UN chief condemns Israel’s accusations of supporting Hamas