Germany Prosecutes Syrian Agent, Ignores US-Enabled War Crimes
Germany has, admirable as it is, charged a former Syrian intelligence agent with murder, utilizing 'universal jurisdiction' for crimes against humanity. A headline from The New Arab heralds this pursuit of justice. Yet, as commendable as prosecuting Assad's henchmen is, one might wonder where this 'universal' jurisdiction vanishes when atrocities are committed with the backing of Washington and
its allies. After all, the US has provided Israel with over $263 billion in military aid since its founding, enabling decades of violence and occupation that human rights groups consistently decry as crimes against humanity. This selective justice offers a convenient narrative: dictators are evil, Western-backed allies are merely 'defending themselves.' It raises immediate questions: will German
courts apply the same universal standards to those complicit in the bombing of Yemeni civilians with U.S.-supplied weapons or the ongoing siege of Gaza? Or does 'universal' merely refer to crimes committed by designated enemies, neatly sidestepping the uncomfortable truth that some crimes against humanity have far more powerful patrons?