A nonprofit organization called the Hind Rajab Foundation has filed a request in the United States seeking prosecution of Israel’s far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir on charges of war crimes, genocide, and direct incitement to genocide. The petition was submitted to the US Department of Justice ahead of Ben-Gvir’s possible visit to New York City in early July.
The foundation stated that the move comes amid growing international concern over Ben-Gvir’s actions and rhetoric. Last year, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Norway, and the United Kingdom imposed sanctions on him for allegedly inciting violence against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank. He has repeatedly called for intensifying Israeli military operations in the region.
Following a Hezbollah attack that killed four Israeli soldiers last week, Ben-Gvir reportedly said that “the whole of Lebanon should be burned.” The Hind Rajab Foundation’s US representative, Jake Rome, described Ben-Gvir as one of the most serious offenders of the time and urged Washington to arrest and prosecute him.