ICC declines Palestinian request for ‘immediate investigation’ of Israel

Shortly after the ICC Chief Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda met Tuesday with PA Foreign Minister Riad al-Maliki, who submitted a request to investigate Israel over the Gaza deaths, a decision to not pursue their request was issued.

By Gary Willig

 

The Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) in the Hague refused the Palestinian Authority’s request to open an immediate investigation against Israel over the deaths of 62 rioters during violent protests on the Gaza border last month.

Palestinian Authority Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki – flickr

ICC Chief Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda met Tuesday with PA Foreign Minister Riad al-Maliki, who submitted the request to investigate Israel.

“The mere submission of the request does not automatically lead to the opening of an investigation,” Bensouda wrote in response. “Since January 16, 2015, a preliminary examination of the situation in Palestine has been conducted to determine whether there is an infrastructure for the opening of a criminal investigation, which has progressed substantially and will continue to be conducted in accordance with the Rome Statute.”

However, the chief prosecutor clarified that she has the independent authority to open an investigation if she concludes that the situation justifies such a step, even without consultation in court. “That there is no doubt that in this case or in any other case brought before me, I will always make the decision in accordance with my powers under the Rome Statute.”

Israel’s Foreign Ministry condemned the PA move as a “a cynical move that is not legally valid. The PA continues to abuse the tribunal for political purposes rather than to promote political negotiations.”

 

View original Arutz Sheva publication at:
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/246295

 

Israel and Stuff POSTSCRIPT:

The Palestinian call to try Israel at the ICC has ‘no legal validity.’ From a statement from the Israeli Foreign Ministry:
“The purported Palestinian referral is legally invalid. The ICC lacks jurisdiction over the Israeli-Palestinian issue, since (1) Israel is not a member of the court and because (2) the Palestinian Authority is not a state.

 

Although the UN and many NGOs have accepted Palestine, it’s purely political, since Palestine has not satisfied any of the 3 prerequisites dictated under int’l law to be defined as a sovereign nation. This is why they continue to exploit the 4th Geneva Conventions, identifying as, “refugees under occupation.”