A demonstrator is seen marching while holding a
placard criticizing BP in London on November 16, 2024. (Photo: David
Tramontan/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
Palestinians
Launch Legal Action Against BP for Fueling Israel's War on Gaza
"By facilitating the transport of
oil that fuels military operations in Gaza, BP has contributed to the
humanitarian catastrophe unfolding in the region," said the director of
the organization backing the claimants.
Dec 23, 2024
A group of
Palestinians whose family members have been killed in Israeli attacks on
the Gaza Strip
over the past 14 months have initiated legal action in the United Kingdom
against the British fossil fuel giant BP, arguing the company is aiding the
assault on the enclave via its ownership of a pipeline that provides Israel with crude
oil.
In a 36-page letter before claim, the group contends that BP's role in
supplying oil to Israel violates the company's stated commitments to human
rights, including its expressed support for the United Nations Guiding
Principles on Business and Human Rights.
"Israel relies heavily on crude oil and refined petroleum
imports to run its large fleet of fighter jets, tanks, and other military
vehicles and operations, as well as the bulldozers implicated in clearing
Palestinian homes and olive groves to make way for unlawful Israeli
settlements," the letter notes. "Some fuel from refineries goes directly to the
armed forces, while much of the rest appears to go to ordinary gas stations
where military personnel can refuel their vehicles under a government
contract."
The group demands from BP an "immediate cessation of oil
supply to Israel and facilitation through" the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline as well as an "admission
liability and a commitment to mediation for assessing damages."
"Our clients seek justice for the profound suffering and loss
they have endured and call on BP to act responsibly by immediately halting its
involvement."
Tayab Ali, head of international law at Bindmans LLP and
director of the International Centre of Justice for Palestinians (ICJP)—which
is supporting the group of claimants—said in a statement Monday that "this
legal action marks a new phase in accountability for those that are complicit
in alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity."
"The evidence against BP demonstrates a clear failure to
adhere to its own human rights policies and international law," said Ali. "By
facilitating the transport of oil that fuels military operations in Gaza, BP
has contributed to the humanitarian catastrophe unfolding in the region. Our
clients seek justice for the profound suffering and loss they have endured and
call on BP to act responsibly by immediately halting its involvement."
According to ICJP, the claimants include "a British citizen
of Palestinian origin who lost 16 family members to Israeli airstrikes," "a
second British Palestinian claimant whose relatives in Gaza have suffered
fatalities and displacement," and "additional claimants who have
endured catastrophic physical and psychological harm including amputations and
loss of family members."
The group sent its legal letter just over a month after a
coalition of environmental groups published a report identifying BP as one of the "top
corporate suppliers of oil to Israel."
"The major international oil companies, including BP,
Chevron, Eni, ExxonMobil,
Shell, and TotalEnergies, may be linked to 35% of
the crude oil supplied to Israel since October [2023]," the report states. "These companies, as well as
state-owned entities and other private and publicly traded oil producers,
profit from supplying oil to Israel's refineries, where a proportion is likely
refined into fuels for Israel's war machine."
Last week, the Centre for Research on Multinational
Corporations argued that "foreign governments have an
obligation" under international law "to end the supply of fuel to
Israel unless they can guarantee it will only be used for nonmilitary
purposes."
"This includes both a ban on the export of crude oil,
military jet fuel, and other fuels, as well as a prohibition on the transport
of these commodities through their territory," the group said.
Our work is licensed under
Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
Jake Johnson is a senior editor and
staff writer for Common Dreams.
Donations can be sent
to Max Obuszewski, Baltimore Nonviolence Center, 431 Notre Dame Lane, Apt. 206,
Baltimore, MD 21212. Ph: 410-323-1607; Email: mobuszewski2001 [at]
comcast.net. Go to http://baltimorenonviolencecenter.blogspot.com/
"The master class
has always declared the wars; the subject class has always fought the battles.
The master class has had all to gain and nothing to lose, while the subject
class has had nothing to gain and everything to lose--especially their
lives." Eugene Victor Debs
No comments:
Post a Comment