Palestinian families launch legal action against British oil giant BP for enabling Israel’s genocide

Palestinians who have lost family members to Israel’s genocide in Gaza have launched a lawsuit against British oil giant BP over the company’s supply of oil to the occupation regime that enables Israel’s mechanised war on Palestinian civilians.

The UK-based International Centre for Justice for Palestinians (ICJP) said in a statement this week that BP is ignoring its human rights responsibilities and must fully reveal all its policies and contracts linked to oil supplies to Israel.

Israel has murdered more than 200,000 civilians in Gaza since October 2023 and is engaged in the continued bombing, forced displacement and deliberate starvation of around two million survivors in Gaza, particularly in the besieged north.

In an article announcing its legal action, the ICJP states that its claim is around BP’s supply of oil to Israel through its BTC pipeline and the horrific impact of BP’s alleged negligence on some of the families taking part in the action:

Grounds for Legal Action

The civil tort claim alleges that BP’s actions breach its stated commitments to human rights under international law, including:

• The UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights.
• The prohibition of complicity in war crimes and crimes against humanity under customary international law.
• Obligations under its own Human Rights Policy, which require BP to avoid contributing to human rights abuses.

The claim further references the International Court of Justice’s (ICJ) rulings in 2024, which acknowledged the “real and imminent risk” of genocide in Gaza. Despite these findings, BP has continued to facilitate oil supplies, essential for Israel’s military operations.

Claimants’ Experiences

The lead claimants in the case include individuals who have suffered significant losses due to the ongoing conflict. These include:

• A British citizen of Palestinian origin who lost 16 family members to Israeli airstrikes and whose surviving family members in Gaza face dire humanitarian conditions.
• A second British Palestinian claimant whose relatives in Gaza have suffered fatalities and displacement, with some dying due to lack of access to medical care and essential supplies.
• Additional claimants who have endured catastrophic physical and psychological harm including amputations and loss of family members.

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