The Palestinian Authority (PA) has provided the International Criminal Court (ICC) a file on Israel’s crimes against Palestinian children, Minister of Foreign Affairs Riyad Al-Maliki said yesterday.
Speaking ahead of the 22nd session of the Assembly of States Parties to the Rome Statute of the ICC in the Hague, Al-Maliki stressed the importance of the ICC and its role in achieving justice for the Palestinian people and holding war criminals accountable “in light of the rise to power of an extremist Israeli government that consists of terrorist settlers.”
Israeli ministers, he added, who “bluntly express their support for extrajudicial killing of Palestinians, their forcible expulsion and settlement expansion.”
“All of these crimes fall within the jurisdiction of the ICC,” Al-Maliki explained, affirming the importance “of accelerating the criminal investigation and bringing criminals before international justice, which will contribute to the protection of the Palestinians.”
The PA continues to cooperate with the ICC, he said, to provide evidence that Israeli officials and settlers “have committed serious crimes against the Palestinian people.” Calling on the ICC prosecutor to visit Palestine and give priority to achieving justice.
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