Credit: Gary Raynaldo  /  © Diplomatic Times  /  Ambassador  Danny  Danon, Permanent Representative of Israel to the United Nations, at  UN world headquarters in New York  Jan. 21, 2020. 

By Gary Raynaldo        DIPLOMATIC  TIMES

UNITED NATIONS  –  NEW  YORK –  The International Criminal Court (ICC)  is considering a formal criminal investigation into alleged Israeli and Palestinian  war crimes committed in the West Bank, East Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip. The chief prosecutor of the Hague-based tribunal Fatou Bensouda  said:  “In brief, I am satisfied that war crimes have been or are being committed in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and the Gaza Strip”.  The ICC prosecutor said that before initiating a formal investigation, she would ask for a ruling by the Pre-Trial Chamber to confirm that the territory over which the Court may exercise its jurisdiction comprises the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and Gaza.   The case could also be widened  to include the alleged killings by Israeli soldiers of more than 200 Palestinians, including more than 40 children, at demonstrations along the Gaza frontier during the past two years.  Israel contends  that the  ICC  has no jurisdiction in the West Bank or in Gaza.   When asked if the  Israeli Defense Forces was guilty of war crimes in Gaza and elsewhere, Ambassador  Danny  Danon, Permanent Representative of Israel to the United Nations said “Absolutely not.”  The Israeli diplomat made the response to a question by Diplomatic Times at a press briefing Tuesday at world headquarters in New York.

“I think it  (ICC war crimes probe) is ridiculous.  It shows the double standard when it comes to Israel. We are very proud of our defense forces. They know how to react. When you look at the world today and you see the conflicts in so many regions and you ask yourself how come this court is focused on Israel.  I hope that, there is a still few weeks to examine the case, I hope they will reach the right decision and they will not continue with this court case.”

-Ambassador  Danny  Danon, Permanent Representative of Israel to the UN

 Netanyahu Calls For Sanctions over ICC War Crimes Investigation

Credit: icc.int/  Fatou Bensouda,  chief prosecutor of The Hague, Netherlands-based ICC war tribunal. 

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has called for sanctions against the ICC and people who work for it, after its chief prosecutor announced she intended to investigate alleged Israeli war crimes.“I think that everybody should rise up against this,” the Israeli prime minister said in an interview with Trinity Broadcasting Network.  In his interview, Netanyahu, who intends to declare large parts of the Palestinian territories as Israeli land, said the ICC was impinging on “Israel’s right, the Jewish people’s right, to live in their ancestral homeland, the land of Israel”.