Highlights:
- HRF and Rashida Tlaib urge US prosecution of Israeli commander Sean Glass.
- HRF alleges Glass committed war crimes and genocide during Gaza operations.
- Glass is suspected of ordering fire on Hind Rajab's family vehicle.
- Hind, five, and two rescuing paramedics were killed in January 2024.
- HRF cites Glass's public statements, geolocated imagery and forensic evidence.
The Hind Rajab Foundation (HRF) and US Representative Rashida Tlaib have called on the US Department of Justice to investigate, arrest and prosecute Israeli military commander Sean Glass over alleged war crimes and acts of genocide in Gaza.
HRF has filed an emergency complaint seeking prosecution under the US War Crimes Act (18 U.S.C. §2441) and the US Genocide Statute (18 U.S.C. §1091). The complaint cites alleged offences including wilful killing, torture, inhuman treatment, unlawful transfer and wanton destruction of property without military necessity.
Tlaib said the US government had a legal obligation to investigate Glass while he was in the country, reports Al Jazeera.
"As a party to the Genocide Convention and the Geneva Conventions, our government is obligated to arrest and investigate him for these war crimes and acts of genocide."
Glass commanded the "Vampire Empire" Company of the 52nd Armoured Battalion, part of Israel's 401st Armoured Brigade, during military operations in Gaza, according to HRF.
The foundation's investigation places Glass and his troops a few hundred metres from the vehicle carrying five-year-old Hind Rajab during an attack on 29 January 2024. HRF alleges that Glass "most likely gave the order to open fire" on the car carrying Hind, her family and the medics dispatched to rescue them.
HRF also alleges that Glass's unit led assaults across Gaza, including the siege of Al-Shifa Hospital, the destruction of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) headquarters, the razing of the Rimal neighbourhood and Palestine Square, and the seizure and destruction of the Rafah Crossing, says the Hind Rajab Foundation.
The foundation said Glass had spent two years publicly documenting his actions through Instagram posts, interviews and a self-published book.
In statements cited by HRF, Glass described the military campaign as a "war of existence of the eternal people" and told his troops to "attack, attack till victory" while marking 100 days of operations.
On the anniversary of seven years in the army, Glass said there was "no more significant way to celebrate" than inside Al-Shifa Hospital, which he called "the terror nest". HRF said he posted satellite images showing the hospital before and after its destruction.
In a farewell speech to his company, Glass said his troops had "destroyed every part to where we were asked to go, in all areas of the Gaza Strip". He also recalled emptying the Zeitoun neighbourhood.
Following a ceasefire, Glass filmed himself saying, "I'll rush at the opportunity to return to the battle and finish the work."
Jake Romm, HRF's US representative, said the US laws cited in the complaint were intended to address alleged offences of this kind.
"The War Crimes Act and the Genocide Statute were written precisely for men like Sean Glass. Congress and successive administrations promised that the United States would never be a refuge for war criminals, instead it has condoned and aided their crimes... that he now walks free and unbothered in the US is not only an insult to his victims, but to all people of conscience here in the US as well."
Dyab Abou Jahjah, HRF's general director, said Glass was suspected of ordering the shooting of the vehicle carrying Hind and members of her family.
"Glass is not just another man implicated in the killing of Hind Rajab. He is the man who most likely gave the order to open fire on the vehicle carrying Hind and members of her family, including other children. That Glass can walk the streets of the United States as though nothing has happened is intolerable."
Natacha Bracq, HRF's head of litigation, said the complaint included geolocated imagery, forensic analysis and material published by Glass himself.
"The evidence in this file is damning and it is extensive: geolocated imagery, forensic analysis, the suspect's own posts and his own voice, all of it preserved to evidentiary standard... All that is missing is the will to act."
Hind was trapped in a car in Gaza City on 29 January 2024, surrounded by the bodies of family members who had been killed, according to the information provided by HRF. During a call with emergency services, she pleaded, "I'm so scared. Please come!"
Hind and the two paramedics sent to rescue her were killed. The vehicle was later found with 335 bullet holes.
An independent analysis by Forensic Architecture concluded that only Israeli forces were present in the immediate area at the time of the shooting, contradicting claims of an active exchange of fire.