Israel Matzav

Big win for Israel at the International Criminal Court

The chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, Luis Moreno-Ocampo, announced on Tuesday that the court has no jurisdiction over a complaint by the 'Palestinian Authority' over alleged Israeli 'war crimes' during Operation Cast Lead. The complaint was dismissed on a 'technicality' - 'Palestine' is not a state and therefore the court cannot entertain complaints from it. The only ways the complaint could be heard would be if 'Palestine' were admitted to the United Nations, or if the United Nations Security Council were to submit a complaint. Neither event is likely for the foreseeable future.

In a written ruling, Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo said that the court cannot investigate the PA's allegations because the court only has jurisdiction over recognized states.

The Office of the Prosecutor noted that while Palestine has been recognized as a state in bilateral relations by over 130 governments, by UN bodies and by other international organizations, the UN General Assembly has granted the PA the status of "observer" and not "non-member state".

Tuesday's long-anticipated decision is also a blow to the PA's ongoing battle for international community to recognize it as an independent state.

Had the ICC had accepted the PA's recognition of its jurisdiction, it would have also tacitly accepted its statehood.

The ICC can try individuals for war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide in states that are party to its founding treaty, the 1998 Rome Statute.

Other internationally recognized states that are not a party to the Rome Statute may also make a declaration that they recognize the court’s jurisdiction on their territory.

In 2009, immediately after the IDF’s Operation Cast Lead offensive against Hamas in the Gaza Strip, PA representative Ali Khashan rushed to submit a declaration to the ICC registrar, stating that the PA recognizes the court’s jurisdiction “for the purpose of identifying, prosecuting and judging the authors and accomplices of crimes committed on the territory of Palestine since July 1, 2002.”

However, in his written ruling on Tuesday, Moreno-Ocampo said the main issue arising from the PA's 2009 declaration was who defines what is a "state" for the purpose of the Rome Statute.

That matter, Moreno-Ocampo said, was decided in the first instance by the UN Secretary General who in cases of doubt was guided by the UN General Assembly.

The Office of the Prosecutor had no authority under the Rome Statute to adopt a method to define the term "state", the Prosecutor said.

...

The Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday that Israel welcomed Moreno Ocampo's decision that at this stage the court has no jurisdiction over complaints filed by the PA, but added that it had "reservations regarding some of the legal pronouncements and assumptions in the Prosecutor's statement".

"Israel made it clear in the first place that the ICC has no jurisdiction in this matter," a spokesman for the ministry said.

"In Israel, the issue has, for an extensive period of time already, been addressed by inter-ministerial teams, headed by the Ministries of Foreign Affairs and of Justice, with the participation of other bodies," the spokesman added.

Israeli NGOs also welcomed the ICC Prosecutor's decision.

More here. This appears to be the only result the court could have reached that was supportable. But stranger things have happened. Stay vigilant.

And yes, I have been out for many hours....

Labels: International Criminal Court, Operation Cast Lead, Palestinian Authority

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 11:58 PM