U.S. Statements Legitimizing Annexation and Genocide Undermine the Foundations of the International System

Date: 22 February 2025

Press Statement
U.S. Statements Legitimizing Annexation and Genocide Undermine the Foundations of the International System

The International Commission to Support Palestinian People’s Rights (ICSPR) strongly condemns the statements made by the U.S. Ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee, in which he expressed no objection to Israel’s seizure of “a large area of the Middle East” based on religious claims under the slogan “from the Nile to the Euphrates.” The Commission also condemns the statements made by U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham, which included justification for genocide and the use of overwhelming destructive force against the Gaza Strip.

ICSPR considers that such positions cannot be viewed as mere passing political opinions; rather, they constitute dangerous incitement that provides ideological support and cover for policies of annexation, settlement expansion, genocide, and mass killing, and directly undermine the rules of international law.

ICSPR affirms that invoking religious narratives or alleged historical claims to justify the acquisition of territory by force constitutes a flagrant violation of the United Nations Charter, particularly Article 2(4), which prohibits the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity of any state. Such rhetoric also contradicts the provisions of the Fourth Geneva Convention and relevant Security Council resolutions, including Resolutions 242 and 2334, which reaffirm the inadmissibility of acquiring territory by force and recognize the occupied Palestinian territory as subject to international humanitarian law.

ICSPR emphasizes that the danger of these statements extends beyond legitimizing crimes of genocide, annexation, colonial expansion, and aggression against Palestine and the states of the region. They also contribute to justifying the targeting of civilians by portraying children, journalists, and other protected persons as combatants or legitimate targets—deliberately distorting facts and disregarding the principles of distinction, proportionality, and the prohibition of collective punishment. Any discourse that justifies the killing of civilians or trivializes crimes committed against them constitutes moral and political complicity in acts that may amount to war crimes, crimes against humanity, and the crime of genocide.

ICSPR stresses that the protection of civilians—including children, journalists, and humanitarian workers—is an absolute legal obligation not subject to interpretation. Public incitement or political justification of such crimes may entail individual criminal responsibility, including accountability before the International Criminal Court where the elements of incitement, support, or contribution to international crimes are met. Political or diplomatic immunity cannot serve as a shield for incitement to, or justification of, international crimes.

ICSPR further notes that this American rhetoric dangerously intersects with the expansionist ideologies promoted by the Israeli government led by war crimes suspect Benjamin Netanyahu, which seeks to entrench a permanent settler-colonial reality based on genocide, ethnic cleansing, colonial annexation, forced displacement, and the erasure of Palestinian national identity—alongside ambitions of regional dominance under the concept of “Greater Israel.” Such projects threaten the Palestinian people, undermine the sovereignty of existing Arab states, and destabilize regional peace and security.

ICSPR warns that any official silence or ambiguity regarding these statements may be interpreted as implicit acceptance, thereby emboldening extremist and racist currents to translate ideological discourse into imposed realities by force. Political or diplomatic support for annexation, expansion, or aggression may incur international responsibility and violates states’ obligations not to recognize unlawful situations or assist in their consolidation.

ICSPR reiterates that the Palestinian people’s right to self-determination and to establish their fully sovereign and independent state on their occupied land is inalienable and non-negotiable, and that respect for international law remains the only foundation for ensuring security and stability in the region.

ICSPR calls upon the American people, the U.S. administration, and the United Nations to adopt a clear and explicit position rejecting such statements, reaffirming commitment to international legitimacy, and putting an end to any rhetoric that legitimizes genocide, annexation, or the targeting of civilians.

ICSPR concludes that a world in which borders are redrawn by force or crimes are justified in the name of racist ideology and fabricated claims is a world outside the framework of modern international law. Only a world governed by binding legal rules and genuine accountability can safeguard peace and security, protect peoples from projects of domination and extermination, and uphold international justice as the ultimate guarantee of human dignity and rights.