Palestine formally joins ICC
(VOVworld) – Palestine formally joined the International Criminal Court (ICC) on Wednesday. The accession was marked at a closed-door ceremony at ICC headquarters in The Hague, exactly 90 days after Palestine joined the court’s founding Rome Statue.
 |
| Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas gestures during a speech in the West Bank city of Ramallah on January 4, 2015. (Photo: AP/ Abbas Momani) |
Palestinian Ambassador to the UN Riyad Mansour called the move a key step toward justice for all the victims killed by Israel. Analysts say joining the ICC is part of Palestine’s strategy of pressuring Israel to withdraw from the occupied territories and agree to Palestinian statehood.
Once it becomes a member, Palestine could seek to have Israeli military or political figures prosecuted for alleged crimes. Israel is not yet a member of the ICC but its citizens can be prosecuted.
Israeli media said France will submit a draft resolution on Palestinian statehood to the UN Security Council. French diplomatic officials said the resolution will define Israel’s pre-1967 border as a reference point for peace talks between the Palestinian Authority and Israel but would allow exchanges of territory. It will designate Jerusalem as capital of both Israel and a Palestinian state and call for a fair solution for Palestinian refugees.