May 23, 2024
ISLAMABAD – Noted human rights lawyer Amal Clooney is trending on social media after it was revealed that she assisted the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) in evaluating evidence of suspected war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in Israel and Gaza.
In case you missed it — the ICC’s prosecutor Karim Khan said on Monday he had requested arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, his defence chief and three Hamas leaders over alleged war crimes. Khan said in a statement issued after over seven months of fighting in Gaza that he had “reasonable grounds” to believe that the five men “bear criminal responsibility” for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Khan also thanked Clooney for being part of a panel of international law experts who provided evidence review and legal analysis.
The internet has since had mixed reviews, primarily because many were criticising Clooney for her silence on Israel’s aggression in Gaza. Now, however, some people are apologising to the lawyer, believing that she could not speak on the matter because she was involved with the proceedings. British-American journalist Mehdi Hassan said, “much of Twitter owes poor Amal Clooney a massive apology”.
American actor John Cusack defended those who had earlier wanted Clooney to take a stance, stating: “It’s fair people wanted her to take a stance and great that she has proven to be on the only side a human rights advocate could be on”.
But some X (formerly Twitter) users highlighted that Clooney was the exception, not the rule in sparing those who remained quiet on the plight of Palestine.
Others maintained that the nature of her job meant she could not “rage at every development” and supporting Palestine on her social media accounts would have undermined her role in the case.
However, many believe that Clooney is not owed any apologies because the ICC prosecutor sought the arrest of three Hamas leaders. Clooney, in her statement also stated that crimes were “committed in Palestine and by Palestinian nationals”. One user was “disappointed by Amal Clooney’s disgraceful attitude towards Palestinian human rights”.
Meanwhile, others criticised her “two side-ism” in the face of the disproportionate suffering faced by the people of Gaza at the hands of Israel. To put it into perspective, over 35,000 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces since October 7, whereas 1,200 Israelis were killed and 134 were taken hostage by Hamas. Moreover, according to Dawn.com, the head of the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees said that 800,000 people had been “forced to flee” Gaza’s far-southern city of Rafah since Israel began military operations there this month.
An Instagram user said that Clooney was “still cancelled” because she “accused Palestinians of committing sexual war crimes — when Palestinians were raped in horrific, unimaginable ways”.
Another netizen underscored that Clooney could have used her platform better, as she had over 140,000 followers on Instagram and was on the cover of Time magazine.
However, perhaps the most important reminder among all the noise about Amal Clooney’s involvement in the case and whether she should be absolved came from an X user who simply said: “A reminder that Palestinians continue to be murdered by Israel while we discuss Amal Clooney”.
It is always important to hold public figures — especially those who are literal human rights lawyers — accountable, but the most important thing is to not detract from the issue. The real highlight is that the arrest warrants have been sought for Israeli leaders.