THE HAGUE: The International Criminal Court prosecutor said on Wednesday her office will open a formal investigation into war crimes in the Palestinian Territories which will examine both sides in the conflict.
The decision comes after the court ruled on February 5 that it has jurisdiction in the case, prompting swift rejection from US and Israel. The Palestinian Authority welcomed the ruling.
“The decision to open an investigation followed a painstaking preliminary examination undertaken
by my office that lasted close to five years’’, outgoing Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda said in a statement.
“In the end, our central concern must be for the victims of crimes, both Palestinian and Israeli, arising from the long cycle of violence and insecurity that has caused deep suffering and despair on all sides’’, Bensouda said.
“My office will take the same principled, non-partisan, approach that it has adopted in all situations over which its jurisdiction is seized.”
Bensouda, who will be replaced by British prosecutor Karim Khan on June 16, said in December 2019 that “war crimes have been or are being committed in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and the Gaza Strip”. — Reuters
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