ICC delegation to arrive in Israel this month

An official ICC delegation is to arrive in Israel at the end of June to investigate possible war crimes carried out in the Palestinian territories; Haaretz reported a Palestinian official as saying yesterday.

The Palestinian official said that the delegation represents the ICC prosecutor’s office at The Hague. It is due to arrive in Israel on 27 June as part of the prosecution’s preliminary examination into whether Israeli soldiers committed war crimes and crimes against humanity in the occupied Palestinian territories.

According to the Palestinian official if an investigation was opened, it would include Palestinian officials from Hamas and other factions. They would be investigated over claims of crimes committed against Israelis.

The Palestinian Authority lawyer said that this measure is very important because it is considered an indication of the seriousness of the issue.

Haaretz said that before the arrival of the delegation, Palestinians would be asked to offer detailed information about Israeli settlement activities in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, as well as last summer’s Israeli assault on the Gaza Strip.