ICC welcomes Palestinians as new member
he Palestinian Authority became a member of the International Criminal Court yesterday, with a lowkey ceremony at the court’s headquarters marking the high-stakes move.
Joining the court is part of a broader effort by the Palestinians to put international pressure on Israel and comes at a time when the chances of resuming negotiations on Palestinian statehood are seen as slim following Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s recent election victory and tough campaign rhetoric.
Palestinians signed the court’s founding treaty in January and Palestinian membership came into force Wednesday. International justice activists hailed the occasion as an opportunity to bring accountability to years of conflict between Palestinians and Israel.
Israel is not a member of the ICC, but the country’s military and civilian leaders could now face charges if they are believed to have committed crimes on Palestinian territory. Israel had no immediate comment Wednesday.
The court’s chief prosecutor, Fatou Bensouda, opened a preliminary investigation in mid-January after the Palestinians formally accepted the court’s jurisdiction dating back to just before last year’s Gaza conflict.
Bensouda was not at the behind-closed-doors welcoming ceremony attended by Palestinian Foreign Minister Riad Malki as she was out of the country.
Human Rights Watch welcomed the Palestinian Authority as the court’s 123rd member and stressed it is now up to Bensouda to weigh whether there is strong enough evidence to merit a full-scale investigation. It is not clear how long her preliminary analysis could take.