A $35 deck of cards aims to shame world leaders over Gaza casualties
A screenshot from the War Criminals Playing Cards account on the X platform (formerly known as Twitter). Courtesy of X screenshot
By Camillo Barone January 26, 2024
Once a staffer for British politicians, Ashish Prashar and an “anonymous collective” are now selling a deck of “War Criminal Playing Cards” to shame national leaders and others they consider responsible for the war in Gaza.
Each card in the 54-card deck, priced at $35, features the face of one leader. The ace of spades is President Joe Biden and the ace of diamonds is Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. There are also cards for, among others, former President Barack Obama, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
“The public can use this deck of cards to remember exactly who they are, utilize the time-honored tradition of public shaming and support the pursuit of every legal avenue to justice,” a press release for the card reads.
The cards’ sellers consider everyone represented in the deck answerable for what they deem “genocide” in Gaza. Israel is defending itself against the charge at the International Criminal Court. Netanyahu has called the accusation “outrageous” and called Hamas “a genocidal organization.”
More than 25,000 Gazans have been killed in Israel’s military campaign, according to the enclave’s health ministry. Hamas militants prompted the war with a surprise attack on Israel on Oct. 7 in which they killed 1,200 and kidnapped 240.
The cards are modeled on a deck created by the Pentagon in 2003 and distributed to American troops so they could recognize the “most wanted” in Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein’s regime, according to the press release.
Card decks to help soldiers identify the enemy and allied aircraft have been used since well before the Gulf War, and the Pentagon in March distributed a deck featuring NATO weaponry to Ukrainian soldiers.
According to the press release, at least 40% of the profits will go to charities in Gaza.
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