(MENAFN- Kuwait News Agency (KUNA)) Amnesty International on Monday appealed to the US government to immediately halt the transfer of a US fuel shipment currently on its way to Israel for use by the Israeli military.
The organization has repeatedly called for a comprehensive arms embargo on all parties to the conflict, amidst mounting evidence that war crimes are being committed by both sides in the past four weeks in Gaza, it said in a statement here this evening.
The US government has continued to supply hundreds of thousands of tons of fuel, including fuel for fighter jets and military vehicles, to Israel's armed forces despite a soaring civilian death toll from aerial and other military attacks.
The last US jet fuel delivery arrived in Israel on 14 July, a week after the conflict began, the human rights group pointed out.
Nine previous shipments were made from the US to Israel during 2013 and 2014, it revealed.
A fuel tanker with the latest US fuel shipment is now sailing past the Azores and is due to arrive in Israel on 12 August.
"By continuing to supply fuel for military vehicles and fighter jets being used in attacks resulting in mounting civilian deaths and horrific injuries, the US government will have more blood on its hands," said Brian Wood, Head of Arms Control and Human Rights at Amnesty International.
"Instead of continuing to send shipments of fuel and arms to the Israeli military, the USA must immediately suspend all such transfers and back an international investigation into the atrocities being carried out by both sides."
According to documents provided to Amnesty International by "TransArms" group in Chicago and the International Peace Information Service in Antwerp, on 23 July 2014 the US-flagged oil tanker, the "Overseas Mykonos," left the port of Corpus Christi, Texas, after departing from Houston for its declared destination of Ashkelon, where there is a major oil terminal just north of the Gaza Strip.
The Israeli army relentless air and land assault has caused overwhelming destruction since the offensive began on 8 July, Amnesty noted.
Thousands of homes have been destroyed and civilian buildings have been damaged, including medical facilities and vital infrastructure.
So far more than 1,800 Palestinians have died, the vast majority of them civilians, including more than 440 children.
With no permanent end to the hostilities in sight, Amnesty International is calling on all other states to immediately impose a comprehensive arms embargo on all the parties to the conflict in Gaza.
Until violators on both sides are held accountable, no shipments of military supplies that can be used for serious violations should be permitted," said Brian Wood.
Amnesty International is calling for the situation in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories to be referred to the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court.
Transport documents provided to Amnesty International show that the "Overseas Santorini" and its sister ship "Overseas Mykonos" docked at Ashkelon oil terminal in Israel at least 10 times since January 2013 - including six times since January 2014 - delivering a total of 277,000 tons of jet fuel (or 101 million gallons) supplied by the US government to the Israeli Armed Forces.
The Athens-based company OSG Ship Management (GR) Ltd managed both tankers.
Seven days after Israel began air attacks on Gaza in "Operation Protective Edge" on 8 July, the most recent consignment of jet fuel was delivered by a US-flagged oil tanker, the "Overseas Santorini."
The tanker departed from Corpus Christi in Texas on 21 June 2014 and arrived in Ashkelon on 14 July 2014 carrying 26,000 tons (or 9.6 million gallons) of jet fuel under a contract with the U.S. Defense Logistics Agency Energy.
The US Defense Logistics Agency Energy (DLA Energy), the US agency responsible for the procurement and distribution of various types of fuel to the US armed forces and their allies, shipped nine of the 10 jet fuel voyages to Israel during 2013 and 2014.
The other voyage was overseen by the "Government of Israel" via its Consulate in New York.
In recent years, DLA Energy has awarded contracts worth hundreds of million dollars to US energy companies for the provision of jet fuel to Israel's armed forces, in particular to a subsidiary firm of San Antonio-based Valero Energy.
Under the US Foreign Assistance Act no security assistance may be provided to "any country the government of which engages in a consistent pattern of gross violations of internationally recognized human rights", Amnesty said.
However, successive US administrations have used a clause in the Act that allows the President to continue its supplies to Israel in "extraordinary circumstances."
"By persistently turning a blind eye to the devastating human cost of its immense arms and military fuel shipments to Israel, the USA is brazenly flouting basic human rights principles," said Brian Wood.
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