FW Pomeroy’s Statue of Justice stands atop the Central Criminal Court building, Old Bailey, London
THE conviction of Palestine Solidarity and Stop the War leaders Ben Jamal and Chris Nineham is a perfect example of the way in which Establishment values underpin the functioning of the state, its coercive apparatus — the police, and the Metropolitan Police in particular — and, as clearly demonstrated today, the judicial system.
Last year’s January 18 protest was one in a series of Palestine solidarity demonstrations in response to the Gaza genocide. By and large they passed without public order incidents and the police, no doubt conscious of the huge public support for the issue, proved careful and courteous in dealing with both organisers and participants.
In this particular case, however, a different mood developed. The police and intelligence organisations know full well — through long experience and with excellent sources of information — that the solidarity movement is in the business of shifting public opinion, not causing disorder.
The charitable will put the police conduct on the day down to incompetence and confusion. The less charitable to conscious design.
Let the legal representatives of the defendants and their organisations speak to the judicial bias exhibited by the court and let us go beyond the surface appearances of bourgeois justice to see how these parts of the system work together.
Keir Starmer explains that UK is actively supporting Israel’s genocidal expansion and repeats his previous quotation that he supports Zionism “without qualification”. Keir Starmer said “I said it loud and clear – and meant it – that I support Zionism without qualification.” here: https://www.jewishnews.co.uk/keir-starmer-interview-i-will-work-to-eradicate-antisemitism-from-day-one/
US Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.) speaks during a press conference with families of Americans killed by Israeli forces on September 16, 2025, in Washington DC. (Photo by Celal Gunes/Anadolu via Getty Images)
“We are witnessing the same genocidal playbook used against Palestinians in Gaza, now in Lebanon,” Rep. Rashida Tlaib said.
As Israel ramps up its devastating invasion of Lebanon, Rep. Rashida Tlaib has introduced legislation in the US House of Representatives aimed at blocking US support.
Israel’s latest onslaught against Lebanon, launched after the militant group Hezbollah retaliated against the joint US-Israeli attack against Iran at the end of February, has already killed more than 1,100 people, including at least 121 children, according to the Lebanese Health Ministry.
Many pieces of civilian infrastructure—including hospitals, schools, and residential buildings—have been attacked, and Israel has issued forced evacuation orders that have led more than 1 million people to be displaced from their homes.
“Thousands of families in our district with strong ties to Lebanon are living through immense pain,” said Tlaib, who represents a district that includes parts of Detroit and surrounding suburbs. “Many have lost loved ones, watched their grandparents’ towns and villages be completely destroyed, and seen relatives uprooted from their homes, not knowing if they will ever be able to return.”
Tlaib (D-Mich.), the only Palestinian-American member of Congress, introduced two resolutions on Friday. The first calls on the US to use its leverage to end Israel’s land and air assaults against Lebanese territory, denounce efforts at territorial expansion, and investigate alleged crimes against humanity.
The second, cosponsored by Reps. Delia Ramirez (D-Ill.) and Nydia Velázquez (D-NY), is a war powers resolution that would require President Donald Trump to remove US forces from participation in all military actions in Lebanon that have not been authorized by Congress.
I'm introducing two resolutions standing with the people of Lebanon against the U.S.-backed Israeli invasion. The first resolution calls on the United States to force an end to the Israeli military invasion, reject threats of the illegal occupation of Lebanese territory,… pic.twitter.com/qgrtNhOkxq
— Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib (@RepRashida) March 27, 2026
In recent days, Israel has expanded its ground operation, aiming to control the entire territory south of the Litani River indefinitely. Leaders of the military campaign, such as Defense Minister Israel Katz, have suggested using the genocidal war in Gaza as a “model” for Lebanon, including the full destruction of residential areas.
“We are witnessing the same genocidal playbook used against Palestinians in Gaza, now in Lebanon,” Tlaib said. “Israeli leaders are openly celebrating it. This ethnic cleansing campaign is only possible because of US support, funded by our tax dollars. We must act now to stop these crimes against humanity and illegal invasion of Lebanon.”
Nathan Thompson, a senior analyst at Just Foreign Policy, which advised Tlaib on the legislation, told Common Dreams that although the US military and Israel Defense Forces (IDF) are “deeply operationally integrated, and have only become more so since October 7, 2023,” the extent of direct US involvement in Lebanon has been kept secret from the public.
“Military officials wouldn’t say whether or not they provided targeting assistance for Israel’s airstrikes on Hezbollah in 2024, and that’s exactly the type of action Congress has considered to be unauthorized ‘hostilities’ under the War Powers Act in the past,” Thompson said.
However, he said, “We know that the IDF and the US military are linked at the hip—on weapons sales, missile defense, targeting assistance, everything.”
Tlaib’s resolutions come as another war powers resolution to limit Trump’s ability to launch more attacks against Iran appears to have gained enough support to pass the House, although Democratic leadership has chosen to delay the vote until mid-April despite warnings that Trump may soon dramatically escalate the war, including with US ground troops.
That bill remains viable due to limited Republican support, including from Reps. Thomas Massie (Ky.), Warren Davidson (Ohio), and Nancy Mace (SC). While Massie has been a consistent anti-war vote, it’s unclear whether other Republicans, as well as some pro-Israel Democrats, would similarly sign onto a resolution concerning Lebanon.
Thompson said the Lebanon-related legislation is an “urgently necessary tool to end US complicity” as Israeli officials are “talking about functionally annexing southern Lebanon and recreating Gaza-level destruction there.”
He said, “A war powers vote forces all of Congress to go on the record: Do you want the US to enable this genocide, or not?”
Keir Starmer objects to criticism of the IDF. He asks how could anyone object to them starving people to death, forced marches like the Nazis did, bombing Gaza’s hospitals and universities, mass-murdering journalists, healthworkers and starving people queuing for food, killing and raping prisoners and murdering children. He calls for people to stop obstructing his genocide for Israel.
This work by Middle East Monitor is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Hundreds of demonstrators gather in central Paris to protest the humanitarian crisis in Gaza and ongoing Israeli settlement activity in the West Bank, as participants wave Palestinian flags and hold banners calling for international action and solidarity with Palestine, on December 20, 2025. [Ümit Dönmez – Anadolu Agency]
Several organizations, including Student Solidarity and the French Jewish Union for Peace, have filed a complaint with a French administrative court challenging ties between French universities, two ministries and Israeli academic institutions, Anadolu reports.
In a statement published Wednesday, the groups said they are seeking “the disclosure, reassessment and termination of links between French and Israeli universities, due to the active participation of the latter in repeated and blatant violations of international law by the Israeli state.”
The French universities cited include Sciences Po Paris, Sorbonne University, Aix-Marseille University, the University of Strasbourg, Grenoble University and others.
France’s Ministry of Higher Education and Research and the Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs are also named in the complaint.
“Amid escalating violence worldwide, universities have an ethical duty to set an example and uphold strict respect for international law,” the statement said.
In 2025, the University of Lausanne and the University of Geneva ended their partnerships with the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
In a landmark opinion in July 2024, the International Court of Justice declared Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territory illegal and called for the evacuation of all settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.
The International Criminal Court has also issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant over war crimes and crimes against humanity during the Gaza war.
This work by Middle East Monitor is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Keir Starmer explains that UK is participating defensively in Trump and Israel’s criminal war for Israel’s genocidal expansion in Iran and states that he supports Zionism “without qualification”. Keir Starmer said “I said it loud and clear – and meant it – that I support Zionism without qualification.” here: https://www.jewishnews.co.uk/keir-starmer-interview-i-will-work-to-eradicate-antisemitism-from-day-one/Donald Trump warns against following the https://onaquietday.org blog, says that it’s easy atm, she only needs to report war crimes supporting Israel’s genocidal expansion.Orcas discuss how Trump was re-elected and him being an obviously insane, xenophobic Fascist.
This work by Middle East Monitor is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Firefighters work where rockets fired by Hezbollah reportedly struck several locations in Nahariya, Israel’s northern Galilee region, on March 16, 2026. [Samir Abdalhade – Anadolu Agency]
Israeli media reported Thursday that Hezbollah launched about 600 rockets, drones and mortar rounds over the past 24 hours, most of them targeting Israeli forces in southern Lebanon, Anadolu reports.
According to Channel 24, the projectiles were fired toward Israeli territory and troops operating in southern Lebanon.
“More than half of the launches were directed at Israeli forces,” the channel said.
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said Wednesday that Hezbollah has launched more than 3,500 rockets, shells and drones toward Israel since the current conflict began early this month.
Earlier Thursday, the Israeli military said a soldier was killed in combat in southern Lebanon, where hostilities have escalated since March 2.
According to military figures, three Israeli soldiers have so far been killed in southern Lebanon.
In a separate statement, the Israeli military said Golani Brigade forces continued “focused ground operations” to expand what it described as a “forward security zone” in southern Lebanon.
Israel has pounded Lebanon with airstrikes and launched a ground offensive in southern Lebanon since a cross-border attack by the Hezbollah group on March 2.
Lebanese authorities say at least 1,094 people have been killed and 3,119 injured in Israeli attacks since then.
The current escalation came amid a joint US-Israeli offensive on Iran which has killed more than 1,340 people since Feb. 28. Iran has retaliated with drone and missile strikes targeting Israel, US bases and Gulf countries.
This work by Middle East Monitor is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Keir Starmer explains that UK is participating defensively in Trump and Israel’s criminal war for Israel’s genocidal expansion in Iran and states that he supports Zionism “without qualification”. Keir Starmer said “I said it loud and clear – and meant it – that I support Zionism without qualification.” here: https://www.jewishnews.co.uk/keir-starmer-interview-i-will-work-to-eradicate-antisemitism-from-day-one/Donald Trump warns against following the https://onaquietday.org blog, says that it’s easy atm, she only needs to report war crimes supporting Israel’s genocidal expansion.Orcas discuss how Trump was re-elected and him being an obviously insane, xenophobic Fascist.
This work by Middle East Monitor is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Israeli settlers seize 13 apartments belonging to Palestinians in the Silwan neighborhood of East Jerusalem on March 25, 2026. [Mostafa Alkharouf – Anadolu Agency].
“This is not incidental violence. It is the architecture of settler-colonialism, built on a foundation of dehumanisation and maintained by a policy of cruelty and collective terror.” The concluding sentence to the summary of UN Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese’s report to the UN Human Rights Council on torture and genocide succinctly sums up how Israel has been using torture as part of its gradual annihilation of the Palestinian people. Since October 2023, torture has become a weapon in Israel’s genocide.
Albanese notes that while torture is a crime under international law, the Genocide Convention describes torture as an underlying act of genocide “when inflicted with the intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a protected group “as such”. Genocide, Albanese explains from the legal framework of the Genocide Convention, “many be committed through sustained practices that break bodies, minds and collective resilience.”
The historical realities of torture since the British Mandate contextualises the current torture practices Israel inflicts on Palestinians today. British torture practices were incorporated by Israel after 1948. In 1987, the Landau Commission effectively ruled in favour of torture “on a person suspected of involvement in terrorist activities.” With impunity assigned a foundation, what happens when a settler-colonial entity which treats Palestinians as legitimate targets for annihilation, blatantly considers all Palestinians as terrorists?
Torture becomes normalised, and because the international community has already subscribed to Israel’s security narrative, there is no opposition to a practice that, as Albanese illustrated, also constitutes an underlying act of genocide.
It is not Israel’s torture of Palestinian detainees since October 2023 that catches attention when reading the report, but the analysis of how Israel uses genocide as a means of torture. Albanese’s report illustrates how mass displacement, the destruction of Gaza’s infrastructure and cultural sites, the erasure of collective memory through such destruction, the destruction of the healthcare system, starvation, permanent disabilities, as well as Israeli weaponry used against Palestinians in Gaza all constitute forms of torture. The same applies to the occupied West Bank, where sophisticated surveillance and military incursions, the destruction of refugee camps and agricultural land, all constitute forms of torture and genocidal violence.
Having prioritised Israel’s security narrative over rights, both the Knesset and Israel’s judiciary have normalised torture. Albanese writes, “Torture has thus become a collective enterprise,” showing how the entire fabric of Israeli society renders itself a participant in torture practices through the settler-colonial narrative. “by targeting the totality of the people, across the totality of the occupied land, through a totality of conduct, genocide has become the ultimate form of torture: continuous, generational and collective.”
Justice, Albanese stated, should “confront torture not as an isolated crime, but as a foundational pillar of the genocidal project aimed at the complete erasure – physical and psychological destruction, displacement and replacement – of the Palestinian people.” Torture as state policy has ensured that no aspect of Palestinian life is immune. The report illustrates what statistical data omits – the price Palestinians are paying in their daily lives for the international community’s complicity with colonialism and genocide.
The views expressed in this article belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Middle East Monitor.
This work by Middle East Monitor is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Keir Starmer explains that UK is participating defensively in Trump and Israel’s criminal war for Israel’s genocidal expansion in Iran and states that he supports Zionism “without qualification”. Keir Starmer said “I said it loud and clear – and meant it – that I support Zionism without qualification.” here: https://www.jewishnews.co.uk/keir-starmer-interview-i-will-work-to-eradicate-antisemitism-from-day-one/Donald Trump warns against following the https://onaquietday.org blog, says that it’s easy atm, she only needs to report war crimes supporting Israel’s genocidal expansion.Keir Starmer objects to criticism of the IDF. He asks how could anyone object to them starving people to death, forced marches like the Nazis did, bombing Gaza’s hospitals and universities, mass-murdering journalists, healthworkers and starving people queuing for food, killing and raping prisoners and murdering children. He calls for people to stop obstructing his genocide for Israel.
FW Pomeroy’s Statue of Justice stands atop the Central Criminal Court building, Old Bailey, London
