GENEVA (31 December 2019) – A UN human rights expert has hailed the International Criminal Court’s decision to consider
a formal criminal investigation into allegations of war crimes in Palestine as a “momentous step forward in the quest
for accountability” in the five-decade-long Israeli occupation.
“Accountability has, until now, been largely missing in action throughout the 52-year-old occupation,” said Michael
Lynk, the Special Rapporteur for the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territory occupied since 1967.
“Over the years, the international community has adopted hundreds of resolutions through the United Nations condemning
various features of Israel’s entrenched occupation of the Palestinian territory. Yet rarely has it ever combined
criticism with consequences for Israel. Now, the possibility of accountability is finally on the horizon.”
ICC Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda announced on 20 December that she was “satisfied that there is a reasonable basis to
proceed with an investigation into the situation in Palestine”. She has spent the past five years reviewing the initial
evidence as part of a preliminary investigation in the 2014 war on Gaza, the IsraeIi settlements and, more recently, the
killing and wounding of Palestinian demonstrators near the Gaza frontier.
Bensouda said that before a formal investigation by her office is initiated, she will ask for a ruling by the Pre-Trial
Chamber on the issue of territorial jurisdiction. Specifically, she is seeking confirmation that the ‘territory’ over
which the Court may exercise its jurisdiction comprises the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and Gaza.
“In a world that proclaims its devotion to human rights and a rules-based international order, it is vital that the
international community defend the decision of the ICC Prosecutor to advance her investigation and to seek a favourable
ruling from the Pre-Trial Chamber on the issue of territorial jurisdiction,” said the Special Rapporteur.
“International law must be the basis for seeking justice for the victims of war crimes in this interminable conflict,
and the international community must resolutely support the laws and the institutions that it has created and nurtured.”
The Special Rapporteur noted that the Prosecutor also intended to investigate whether members of Hamas and other
Palestinian armed groups had committed war crimes in the period since June 2014. “If the evidence gathered by the ICC
Prosecutor leads her to make findings against these organizations, then her efforts must also be supported,” said the
Rapporteur. “The Rome Statute is meant to be applied dispassionately; indeed, this is the only way to build the
necessary political and popular support for its mission.”
Addressing the long-standing concern about how slowly the wheels of justice have turned in this matter, the Special
Rapporteur urged that the territorial jurisdiction issue be presented and resolved as expeditiously as possible by the
Pre-Trial Chamber.
“Justice delayed is justice denied. Should the allegations of war crimes then proceed to the formal investigation stage,
every effort must be made to advance the work of the Prosecutor’s office in a reasonably speedy manner consistent with
legal fairness, so that the many victims of this conflict can realistically hope that justice might yet prevail within
their lifetimes.”