US and Israel strongly against war crimes investigations
The International Criminal Court launched a preliminary investigation into war crimes in the occupied Palestinian territories.
Official Washington is rated "tragic irony" and Israel "scandalous" decision by Friday issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC) to initiate preliminary investigations as a stage preceding the official investigation of war crimes in the Palestinian territories, agencies.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that "rejects" the decision of the ICC, calling it "scandalous". According to him, because Palestine is not a state, the ICC has no jurisdiction over it, according to the regulations of the same court.
State Department spokesman Jeff Rathke called "tragic irony that Israel, faced with thousands of terrorist rockets fired on its inhabitants and their fourth, now the subject of an investigation of the ICC."
Preliminary investigation of the ICC is the result of diplomatic offensive launched by the Palestinians at the UN, signed up to the ICC on January 2nd. Israel has reacted termination payments hundred million of taxes collected on behalf of the Palestinian Authority.
Preliminary inspection serves to determine whether there is a "reasonable basis" for the launch of an official investigation, the prosecutor's office said in a statement.
Accepted Rome Statute
On Friday, the ICC announced that launches a preliminary examination of possible war crimes committed in the Palestinian territories. In a statement to the Court does not explicitly mention Israel or the Israeli army, but the investigation could lead to charges against Israel and / or the Palestinian groups.
Palestinian government on January 2nd accepted the Rome Statute, the basic document of the court, which Chief Prosecutor obtains jurisdiction over an investigation into possible crimes in the future.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas at the same time the ICC sent a document which authorizes the General Prosecutor's Office to investigate the alleged crimes committed "in the occupied Palestinian territory after 13 June 2014" when Israel began a major campaign of arrests in the West Bank followed by a war in Gaza.
This allows the Court to deal with the war between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip in July and August 2014, during which killed more than 2,300 Palestinians and 73 Israelis.
- 17 Jan, 2015
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