...After Israel’s assault on Gaza killed five members of Monadel Herzallah’s family, he decided to sue President Joe Biden. Herzallah—a U.S. citizen—had already taken part in protests and written to his representatives. This felt like the logical next step. “We have exhausted every possible way we can raise our voice,” he says in an interview with TIME. “They did not stop the genocide.”

On Nov. 13, Palestinians in Gaza and the U.S.—aided by the Center for Constitutional Rights—sued Biden, Secretary of State Antony Blinken, and Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin. The lawsuit aims to stop the U.S. from providing more arms, money and diplomatic support to Israel, on the grounds that the U.S. is legally obliged to avoid facilitating an ongoing genocide. 

In the meantime, the Center for Constitutional Rights is focused on proving U.S. culpability in supporting Israel’s campaign. “You cannot breach fundamental principles of international law in the name of self defense,” says Katherine Gallagher, a senior attorney at the Center for Constitutional Rights and one of the lawyers who brought the case.

In the meantime, the Center for Constitutional Rights is focused on proving U.S. culpability in supporting Israel’s campaign. “You cannot breach fundamental principles of international law in the name of self defense,” says Katherine Gallagher, a senior attorney at the Center for Constitutional Rights and one of the lawyers who brought the case...

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