Abu Bluff turns down tax money as Israel sets off unpaid bills
'
Moderate' '
Palestinian' President
Mahmoud Abbas Abu Mazen has turned down tax revenues that were to be turned over by Israel because the Israeli government
set off from the money amounts owed by the 'Palestinian Authority' for electricity and other utilities and for hospitalization.
Israel withheld the collected tax revenues beginning in January after
P.A. President Mahmoud Abbas signed requests in late December to join
the International Criminal Court and other international conventions as a
result of the failure of the United Nations Security Council to pass a
Palestinian statehood proposal.
The Palestinians are believed to owe millions of dollars to Israel
for utilities provided by Israel as well as for visits to Israeli
hospitals, Reuters reported.
Abbas rejected the returned funds saying Israel had deducted one-third of the money owed to them.
“We are returning the money. Either they give it to us in full or we
go to arbitration or to the (International Criminal) Court. We will not
accept anything else,” he said Sunday.
The P.A. said last week its public employees would receive 60 percent
of their salaries for the month of March, the Wafa Palestinian news and
information agency reported.
Israel has
never signed the Rome Protocol and has never submitted to the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court. As a sovereign nation, it cannot be hauled into court without its consent. Good luck suing us there.
Labels: Abu Mazen, International Criminal Court, Israel Electric Corporation, Palestinian tax transfers, prisoner salaries
'Palestinians': We never agreed to drop the ICC prosecution
The 'Palestinians' are denying a story I ran earlier today that claimed that they had agreed to drop their attempt to have Israel prosecuted for '
war crimes' in the International Criminal Court in exchange for having their
tax moneys released.
A senior Palestinian official told Haaretz that the report, which
first appeared in The Jerusalem Post, was entirely false and merely spin
put out by the Prime Minister's Office.
"We continue to seek membership of the
International Criminal Court and we expect the ICC to open an
investigation into Israeli settlements, as well as the recent war in
Gaza," the official said.
"The reports in the Israeli newspapers are nothing
more than spin from Netanyahu's bureau; there was no such agreement. The
money that Netanyahu transferred is Palestinian money and he isn't
doing us any favors."
As far as the Palestinian Authority is concerned,
the official added, Ramallah is more determined than ever to forge ahead
with war crimes charges in The Hague.
"This Wednesday," he said, "Palestine will become a
member of the ICC and the Palestinian Foreign Minister, Dr. Riyad
al-Maliki, will represent the Palestinians in The Hague." He added that
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said as much during the Arab League summit in Egypt over the weekend.
Who wants to bet that they did agree to drop it and changed their tune once the money was released?
Labels: International Criminal Court, Palestinian Authority, Palestinian tax transfers, war crimes
Success? 'Palestinian Authority' to drop ICC in exchange for tax moneys
The Jerusalem Post is reporting that the 'Palestinian Authority' has agreed to drop its efforts to haul Israel before the International Criminal Court
in exchange for tax moneys.
The Palestinian Authority will formally join the International Criminal
Court on April 1, but – following Israel’s decision on Friday to
release frozen tax revenues – is not expected at this time to take
steps against Israel in the ICC regarding settlement construction.
In
addition, The Jerusalem Post has learned that while the ICC prosecutor
has – at the PA’s request – opened a preliminary examination on
alleged Israeli war crimes during Operation Protective Edge over the
summer, the PA is not expected at this time to take additional legal
steps in the ICC regarding the Gaza operation.
As a result of
Israel’s decision to free up the funds, the PA also does not intend now
to stop its security cooperation with Israel, the Post also learned.
It
was the PA’s steps to join the ICC at the end of December that led
Israel to freeze the monthly tax transfers in the first place.
Prime
Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced Friday that, at the
recommendation of the security establishment, the money that has accrued
since then, some $500 million, will be freed up, though the PA’s
electric, water and hospital bills to Israel will be subtracted from
those funds.
...
One government official said that no decision has yet been made
regarding whether March’s revenues will be transferred, an indication
that this will depend on whether the PA does indeed not pursue other
moves at this time at the ICC, and whether it maintains its security
cooperation with Israel.
With the security establishment
recommending for weeks the transfer of the frozen funds in order to
reduce tension in the West Bank, it was expected for some time that
this move would take place relatively soon after the March 17 election.
So if you squeeze them hard enough, they eventually cry 'uncle.' There's a lesson here for the future.
Labels: Binyamin Netanyahu, International Criminal Court, Palestinian tax transfers
'Palestinians' to file charges with ICC charging Israel with murdering Arafat
Someone please tell me that the International Criminal Court won't be stupid enough to hear this one:
I would bet that the kangaroo court will take those charges very seriously. If you're not aware of the real cause of Arafat's death, go
here.
Earlier on Sunday, the 'Palestinians' offered to drop at least one of their ICC petitions if Israel stops building '
settlements.' And they also threatened to drop 'security cooperation' unless Israel frees up tax money for them.
The official told The Times of Israel that
land seizures in occupied territory constituted a clear violation of
international law. Still, he noted that the appeal to the ICC would be
withdrawn if Israel were to freeze settlement construction, and added
that the Palestinian Authority had conveyed to Israel an official
message to that effect, through Jordan and Egypt.
The official, a confidant of PA President
Mahmoud Abbas, also threatened that security coordination with Israel
would be curtailed if Jerusalem failed to transfer Palestinian tax money
it has been withholding as a punitive measure over the PA’s ICC bid.
“In the first stage [the cessation of security coordination] will entail
a stop to arrests made by us,” he said. “We will only arrest those we
decide to arrest.”
Under current security arrangements,
Palestinian security forces also arrests terror suspects based on
intelligence received from Israel.
The official revealed that the PA had
established a special judicial committee to examine the issue of turning
to The Hague ahead of the date when Palestine will formally join the
institution – April 1, 2015.
The 'Palestinians' are willing to do anything to ensure that there will be no consequences for their refusal to make any progress on 'peace.' They are playing a waiting game in the hope that one day they will be stronger than Israel. What could go wrong?
Labels: International Criminal Court, Palestinian Authority, Palestinian tax transfers, settlement freeze, Yasser Arafat
As the ICC investigates Israel...
The world as a farce....
Labels: Hamas, International Criminal Court, Palestinian children, war crimes
ICC launches 'war crimes' probe against Israel
Shavua tov, a good week to everyone.
The fact that this was probably inevitable does not make it any less of a farce. The International Criminal Court has opened an '
investigation' into Israel's actions this past summer in Gaza.
"A preliminary examination is not an investigation but a process of
examining the information available in order to reach a fully informed
determination on whether there is a reasonable basis to proceed with a
(full) investigation," Bensouda was quoted as having said.
Depending on her findings, Bensouda will decide at a later stage
whether to launch or quash the investigation, based on the initial
probe, the report added.
Israel condemned the decision as "scandalous", as Prime Minister
Binyamin Netanyahu said in a statement that since “Palestine” is not a
state, the ICC had no jurisdiction over it, according to the court's own
rules.
The probe is "absurd" since "the Palestinian Authority cooperates
with Hamas, a terror group that commits war crimes, in contrast to
Israel that fights terror while maintaining international law, and has
an independent justice system," Netanyahu pointed out.
Foreign Minister Avigdor Liberman added that the sole purpose of the
preliminary examination was to "try to harm Israel's right to defend
itself from terror."
In a statement he said the decision was "solely motivated by
political anti-Israel considerations," adding that he would recommend
against cooperating with the probe.
The United States has slammed the probe as '
harmful to peace.'
"It is a tragic irony that Israel, which has withstood thousands of terrorist rockets fired at its civilians and its neighborhoods, is now being scrutinized by the ICC," US State Department spokesman Jeff Rathke said in a statement.
In 2009, the ICC opened an investigation into Israel's actions in Operation Cast Lead. That probe was closed in 2012 because 'Palestine' was not a state. Since then, with Western complicity, the 'Palestinians' status at the United Nations has been upgraded from 'observer' to 'non-member state.' That allowed 'Palestine' to join the ICC.
It's long past time for the West to make a choice: Are you with the Arab-Islamist terrorists or are you against them? So far, the West has either been incapable of choosing or has chosen to side with the terrorists - perhaps out of
fear. Israel is just the canary in the coal mine. The inability to choose does not bode well for Western civilization.
This is perhaps the oddest reaction:
Rights group Amnesty International welcomed the ICC's announcement saying it "could pave the way for thousands of victims of crimes under international law to gain access to justice."
But the initial probe could lead to an investigation into crimes "committed by
all sides", Amnesty stressed in a statement, with many noting that
every missile fired on Israel by the PA's unity partner Hamas, and
indeed by PA chairman Mahmoud Abbas's Fatah, constitutes a war crime.
'Many.' But don't spend too much time looking for Amnesty to call every rocket a 'war crime.' If they did, they would have to admit that Israel has a right of
self-defense. If anything, the ICC is investigating the wrong side.
Labels: Amnesty International, Avigdor Lieberman, Binyamin Netanyahu, International Criminal Court, Palestine, war crimes
The day after
Note that's the day after the
kidnapping and murder of three Israeli teens by 'Palestinian' terrorists this past summer. If that stands, it means that the kidnapping and murder would not by justiciable by the International Criminal Court.
Not that it's
likely to matter. The court is likely to be institutionally biased against Israel anyway.
There is no reason to think the prosecutor or Court are eager for
Israel/Palestine cases, and a lot of reasons to think they are not,
given the disproportionate political headaches they entail.
Yet
there is cause to think that the the Court is a most improper venue for
sorting the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Indeed, even absent any bias,
the Court is structured in a way that cannot do equal justice, and is
thus properly seen as a Palestinian tool against Israel. Moreover,
recent statements by the Prosecutor give troubling evidence that she may
be willing to replace legal analysis with the off-the-shelf views of
the “international community” on the conflict.
To be clear, I
think the most likely outcome from the Palestinian effort is no full
investigation of either side, at least any time soon. Rather, I am
trying to explain why the Palestinians see the ICC as a good bet – one
more likely to break their way than not. This is important because many
distinguished jurists and academics
not unsympathetic to the Palestinians have warned them that they have
more to loose than gain from ICC proceedings. But they went ahead
anyway, which means they have a different analysis – one that I try to
reconstruct here.
The Court’s track record suggests it is
incapable of rendering impartial justice in an ongoing bilateral
conflict. The Court is not some well-established, Olympian seat of
judgment. Rather, it is a weak, conflicted and floundering institution, beset by profound embarrassments that might affect its decision-making.
It has completed only three cases, with two convictions. Most recently,
it has seen two of its highest-profile matters – the only ones
involving sitting heads of state – disintegrate. These were the
prosecutions of Kenya’s president for election violence, and of Sudan’s
president Bashir, for genocide. Both proceedings failed because of the
persistent, and in the case of Kenya, subtle, non-cooperation of the
target regime. (Despite their current embrace of the ICC, the
Palestinians have long been on record opposing the ICC’s arrest warrant
against Bashir.) The ICC has proven itself completely incapable of
prosecuting a case against an unwilling regime, especially an
authoritarian or illiberal one.
Read the whole thing.
Labels: anti-Israel bias, Eugene Kontorovich, International Criminal Court, kidnapping, murder
State Department, Rivlin slam Netanyahu for freezing 'Palestinian' funds
State Department spokeswoman Psaki and Israeli President Reuven Rivlin have slammed the Netanyahu government for
freezing funds transfers to the 'Palestinian Authority' in retaliation for the 'Palestinians' joining the International Criminal Court.
"This step is one that raises tensions as others do," State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said, referring to the freeze on revenue transfers to the Palestinian Authority.
...
The PA regularly fails to stand by its agreements, and owes Israel staggering sums, including over 1.4 billion shekels (over $360 million) in unpaid electric bills.
The PA has responded with intransigence, with onetime Palestinian Arab negotiator Saeb Erekat claiming to AFP Saturday that the move itself constitutes a "war crime."
I can't think of any reason why that would be a war crime. Here's Rivlin.
At a closed meeting of more than 30 Israeli ambassadors to Europe, held at the President's Residence in Jerusalem, Rivlin criticized both the PA's unilateral moves and Netanyahu's response, calling it damaging to Israel.
Two envoys who attended the meeting told Haaretz that
"President Rivlin said the Palestinian Authority's application to the
International Criminal Court in The Hague is an attempt by [PA Chairman
Mahmoud] Abbas to evade direct negotiations with Israel and force it
into an agreement on its [the PA's] terms, without any Palestinian
concessions."
Rivlin further criticized the actions of the Palestinians, calling
them a violation of the Oslo Accords, and arguing that the Israeli
government should respond - albeit with careful considerations to aid
Israel's interests, not harm them.
To that end, he noted, "freezing the transfer of Palestinian tax money is not beneficial to us and not beneficial to them."
"The Palestinians sustain themselves with these funds which also keep
the Palestinian Authority functioning. It is in Israel's interest that
the PA will function," Rivlin added.
"I was a lawyer until the age of 48, but I would never file a claim for compensation that would end up hurting me," the two ambassadors quoted Rivlin as saying.
I'd like to hear whether Rivlin has any other suggested responses. If he doesn't, he should sit and be quiet.
Labels: International Criminal Court, Jen Psaki, Palestinian tax transfers, Ruby Rivlin, State Department obsession with Israel
How long will it last?
Shavua tov, a good week to everyone.
In retaliation for the 'Palestinians' joining the International Criminal Court, Israel has
suspended the transfer of $127 million in tax money to the 'Palestinian Authority.' How long will it last? I'm betting about a week.
Israel froze the transfer of about half a billion shekels (127
million USD) to the Palestinian Authority (PA), a political source told Arutz Sheva Saturday night, in retaliation for the PA's official request to join the International Criminal Court (ICC).
He said the decision was made Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu's
orders and constitutes the Israeli response to the PA's unilateral
moves.
"The funds for the month of December were to be transferred Friday,
but the government decided to freeze [the transfer] as part of the
response to the Palestinian move," the official said.
That number is about a third of what the 'Palestinians' owe the Israel Electric Corporation. Of course, that debt is being subsidized by the Israeli rate payer through higher electric rates.
Labels: International Criminal Court, Israel Electric Corporation, Palestinian Authority, Palestinian tax transfers
The 'Palestinians' try to make up for a loss
It's been my busiest month work-wise since November 2008, and it got to the point where my boss said to me sometime on Wednesday that he knew I was working really hard because I had not posted anything to my blog in three days. Yeah, he reads it too....
But on Thursday I have another travel day - heading back to Israel for the Sabbath. It has the distinct advantage of shortening Thursday's fast for me to about seven hours (I'll be heading eastbound). But I have to be up awfully early....
The 'Palestinians' have also had a busy week. On Tuesday, they lost their 'statehood' vote in the United Nations Security Council. It took a lot of pressure from the United States, and a lot of courage by two African nations on the Security Council to make it happen, but the 'Palestinians'
lost again.
"The US had a very
significant role," said a high-ranking official at the Foreign Ministry
in Jerusalem. "Not only were they willing to veto, they also worked
side-by-side with Israeli diplomats in order to prevent support for the
decision within the Security Council. It's not that they just said they
would vote against it. They worked. There were phone calls and messages.
The American diplomatic effort is noteworthy."
Apart from the
critical help from Washington, the results of the Security Council vote
are also a testament of the diplomatic achievements made by the Foreign
Ministry headed by Avigdor Lieberman, who marked Africa as a target for
diplomatic efforts. The African nations proved themselves loyal during
the moment of truth with the support of Rwanda and Nigeria.
Representing the Netanyahu government, Lieberman set out on a trip
that began in September of 2009 in which he visited Ethiopia, Kenya,
Ghana, Nigeria and Uganda. In June 2014, Lieberman returned to Africa
and visited Rwanda, the Ivory Coast, Ghana, Ethiopia, and Kenya.
Visits of by an Israeli diplomat of this stature to Africa have not
been seen since the days of Golda Meir as foreign minister. During her
tenure, Israel had 27 representatives in Africa compared to the 10 that
exist today. The wide-ranging investments Israel has made in African
aid, along with the Israeli business that operate in the continent,
proved to be very worthwhile.
They key nation was without a doubt Nigeria.
The African nation was the ninth country that was supposed to give
the Palestinians the necessary majority in the UN Security Council. In
the end, it became the nation that swayed from Palestinian support to
abstention and by doing so enabled the prevention of the unilateral
Palestinian resolution to pass.
High-ranking officials
within the Foreign Ministry had already come to terms with the fact that
Nigeria would give Palestinian the ninth vote majority and that the US
would then use its veto. But the events played out surprisingly
different.
Read the whole thing. It's a fascinating piece. I'd love to hear more about South Korea - not a surprising vote given our economic ties there. And please don't visit France....
The 'Palestinians' are trying to make up for their loss by
joining the International Criminal Court. That may not have been so smart either.
Earlier this year the PA signed onto 15 international treaties and was immediately in violation of 11 of them. The PA subsequently was, ironically, accepted into convention against corruption. The European Court of Auditors is starting to investigate charges of PA corruption.
Earlier this year a former prosecutor of the ICC, Luis Moreno-Ocampo, warned
the PA that joining the ICC could put the PA in legal jeopardy on
account of its unity government with Hamas, a terrorist organization. An
Israeli NGO, Shurat Hadin, The Israel Law Center, last month petitioned the ICC
to investigate Abbas for war crimes. Though the PA was not, at that
time, a signatory to the Rome Statute, Abbas is a citizen of Jordan,
which is.
The 'Palestinians' seem to have as many moves as OJ Simpson. Here's hoping they end up like him.
Labels: International Criminal Court, Nigeria, Palestinian state RIGHT NOW syndrome, United Nations Security Council
Abu Bluff's fake ultimatum
'
Moderate' '
Palestinian' President
Mahmoud Abbas Abu Mazen has threatened that either Israel agree to the borders of a 'Palestinian state' along the 1949 armistice lines, or he will withdraw 'security cooperation' and go to the International Criminal Court to complain about Operation Protective Edge.
Jonathan Tobin argues that
Abu Bluff is bluffing again.
First, it should be remembered that despite Abbas’s claims that
Israel has yet to put forward a map of where an acceptable Palestinian
state might be, the PA has already received several such maps and turned
each one of them down over the course of negotiations stretching back
to 2000. When former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert offered Abbas a map
pretty much along the lines he is demanding in 2008, he fled the
negotiations and wouldn’t return to the table for years. In the latest
round with the Netanyahu government during the past year, Abbas wouldn’t
negotiate seriously on any issue and again seized the first pretext to
break them off.
The reason for this behavior is that although Abbas sometimes talks a
good game about peace, he knows his public is not ready for a deal that
will recognize the legitimacy of a Jewish state alongside a Palestinian
one. So as much as he has put on a good show in recent years about
wanting a state, his goal has always been to avoid a peace deal or even
being put in a position where he would be forced to say either yes or no
to one.
Abbas does like the idea of going to the UN and the ICC since that
allows him to avoid making reciprocal agreements with Israel,
recognizing a Jewish state, and acting as if the future of the
Palestinians lies in cooperation rather than futile “resistance.” But he
also knows that the UN can’t give him a state.
As for the threat of Abbas ending security cooperation with Israel,
that’s a bad joke. While the Israelis do view any help they get from the
various PA security forces as useful, the main beneficiary of the
cooperation is not the Jewish state; it’s Abbas. As the revelations of a
planned Hamas coup against the PA uncovered by the Israelis proved, the
PA leader’s hold on his office as well as his personal security depends
on Israel’s good will.
So does that make it inevitable that Abu Bluff will go to the UN and the ICC? No - that was inevitable already.
Read the whole thing.
Labels: 1949 armistice lines, Abu Mazen, Binyamin Netanyahu, Fatah, Hamas, International Criminal Court, Operation Protective Edge, United Nations
Indicted for war crimes!
Hamas politburo chief Khaled Meshaal is accused of war crimes in a criminal indictment filed by the Israeli organization Shurat HaDin with the International Criminal Court. No, he hasn't been indicted for shooting rockets at Jews or attempting to kidnap and murder Jews using underground terror tunnels. Rather, he's been accused of
murdering 'Palestinian' 'collaborators' with Israel without trials.
Shurat Hadin, which prosecutes international terrorist groups and
their supporters, said the indictment was in response to the summary
execution of 38 Palestinians in Gaza during the final days of Operation
Protective Edge. Such executions without any legal due process is a
clear violations of international humanitarian law, the NGO pointed out.
The men were shot dead - some of them publicly - after being accused of cooperating with Israel, following the assassination of three senior Hamas military leaders and the attempted assassination of the terrorist group's military chief Mohammed Deif.
But rights groups say the charges of "collaboration" with Israel were
simply used as an excuse for Hamas to kill off several high-profile
political opponents, including members of Palestinian Authority Chairman
Mahmoud Abbas's Fatah party.
The indictment noted that Mashaal run's Hamas's "murderous rule" of
Gaza, and thereby is responsible for the executions. Indeed, Mashaal is
Hamas's most senior political figure, and as chief of the group's
"political beurou" has direct control over affairs in the Gaza Strip.
Shurat Hadin founder and chairwoman attorney Nitzana Darshan-Leitner
noted that Mashaal is a Jordanian citizen, and can therefore be
prosecuted by the ICC because Jordan is a party to the Rome Statute.
Despite that, Jordan has never requested Mashaal's extradition from his
base in Qatar, nor has it sought to fulfill its legal obligations to
prosecute other Hamas leaders with Jordanian citizenship over war crimes
or terrorism charges.
Hamas proudly took responsibility for the executions, and celebrated them as a "victory for the resistance". Footage aired by CNN shows Hamas executioners publicly reading out the verdict against some of the condemned men in a Gaza mosque.
I doubt that Meshaal will ever face any kind of punishment, but a ruling against him could mean that he cannot travel anywhere outside the Arab-Muslim world (which we already know
ignores the court's rulings when they're against its own) without fear of arrest. I can't see the likes of Britain, France of Germany, let alone the US, allowing him entry into their countries if he's a fugitive from justice for war crimes.
What could go wrong?
Labels: collaborators, Gaza, Hamas, International Criminal Court, Khaled Meshaal, Shurat HaDin, war crimes
'Palestinians' to demand that Security Council set 'timetable' for Israel to abandon Judea and Samaria, Israel to rely on OUR friends the Saudis
On September 15, the 'Palestinians' plan to demand from the United States Security Council that it set a '
timetable' for Israel to abandon Judea and Samaria. The United States is to chair the Council in September, with
King Barack himself to sit in the chairman's seat on September 24. This is from the first link.
[Palestinian Authority spokesman Nabil] Sha'ath said that the PA expected the Security Council to comply with
its demands; if it does not do so, the Authority will seek help from
the International Court of Justice in The Hague. There, the PA will
demand that Israeli officials be charged as “war criminals” for the
damage caused to Gaza, as the IDF responded to incessant rocket attacks
by Hamas on Israeli civilian population centers.
It should be noted that if the PA does take its case to the Court, it
will have to become a full-fledged member of that organization. While
the PA has in the past sought membership in international organizations,
Israeli officials said that they were unlikely to seek membership in
the Court, because it would open them up to being charged with war
crimes.
On Wednesday, Israel's ambassador to the UN, Ron Prosor, submitted a
list of Hamas war crimes that took place during Operation Protective
Edge to the UN Security Council. In a message accompanying the list,
Prosor wrote that “despite the fact that the Council recognizes that
Hamas has committed war crimes, nothing has been done yet about them.”
Prosor submitted a lengthy, detailed list of all the rockets fired by
Hamas – their targets and the damage they caused – with nearly all of
them fired at civilian targets, which in itself is a war crime, as well
as many examples of Hamas using the Gaza civilian population as human
shields, launching attacks from homes, schools, and hospitals. “I expect
the Security Council to loudly condemn Hamas' activities. The Council
cannot remain silent over the use by Hamas of Gaza civilians as human
shields.”
Good luck with that list. The world doesn't give a damn when Muslims kill other Muslims or get them killed. Ask the Syrians about that. And as to them shooting at the Jews... hey... that was 'self-defense' because Israel
didn't give them Iron Dome.
JPost reports that the 'Palestinian Authority' also hopes to play a role in
reconstructing Gaza, after Prime Minister Netanyahu's 'great victory.'
The Palestinians also intend to form a permanent unity government that has the complete backing of Hamas in hopes that such a government would expedite the rehabilitation of the Gaza Strip.
“In cease-fire discussions, Israel was forced to give up on its demand that Hamas decommission its weapons, and this was due to American pressure,” Shaath told Ma’an.
And guess who Israel will rely on to ensure that money doesn't go to waste.... OUR friends, Saudis.
The PA will lead coordination of the reconstruction effort in Gaza with international donors, including the European Union, Qatar, Turkey and Norway. Saudi Arabia is also likely to be a major donor, with the expectation in Jerusalem being that unlike Qatar, it will take pains to ensure that its funds will not be directed to Hamas, but rather to build up the PA.
What could go wrong?
Labels: Barack Hussein Obama, Binyamin Netanyahu, Fatah, Hamas, International Criminal Court, Nabil Sha'ath, Ron Prosor, Saudi Arabia, United Nations Security Council, war crimes
This may be the worst interview ever by a UN official
William Schabas, who has been appointed as the Richard Goldstone of Operation Protective Edge, was interviewed by Israel's Channel 2 television on Tuesday night. He could not have turned in a worse performance.
Asked why he called Netanyahu his
"favorite" to indict at the International Criminal Court, instead of
Syria's Assad or Hamas' Mashal, Schabas said he merely echoed the
Goldstone Report. Except Netanyahu wasn't PM then—and isn't mentioned
anywhere in the report!
Let's go to the videotape (English with Hebrew subtitles).
It's a pity that the interviewer didn't know enough facts to ask better follow-up questions. More 'highlights' of the interview
here.
Labels: Gaza, Hamas, International Criminal Court, morons, Operation Protective Edge, United Nations, United Nations Human Rights Council, William Schabas
International Criminal Court says it has no jurisdiction over the territory of 'Palestine'
The 'Palestinians' keep talking about taking Israel (which never signed the treaty) to the International Criminal Court. So far, the Court doesn't seem interested.
Hmmm.
I received a fuller statement of the Court via email:
Palestine is not a State Party to the Rome Statute, the founding treaty of the ICC; neither has the Court received any official document from Palestine indicating acceptance of ICC jurisdiction or requesting the Prosecutor to open an investigation into any alleged crimes following the November 2012 United Nations General Assembly Resolution (67/19), which accorded non-member observer State status to Palestine.
The ICC has no jurisdiction over alleged crimes committed on the territory of Palestine.
I don't recall whether jurisdiction is retroactive were 'Palestine' to choose to join. But if they do join, it will be interesting to see what the Court does with Hamas' manual on
using civilians to as human shields.
Labels: civilian casualties, Gaza, Hamas, human shields, IDF, International Criminal Court, Operation Protective Edge
PA Rep to 'human rights council': 'Israel follows international law, we don't'
A stunning admission on 'Palestinian Authority' official television by Ibrahim Khreisheh, the 'Palestinian Authority's representative to the United Nations 'human rights council.' Khreisheh admits that Israel follows international law in its strikes on Gaza, while the 'Palestinians' don't follow international law.
Let's go to the videotape.
Hmmm.
Labels: Gaza, Hamas rockets, International Criminal Court, international law, Operation Protective Edge, Palestinian Authority Television, United Nations Human Rights Council, war crimes
Tables turning? Israel preparing to take Abu Mazen to International Criminal Court
Israel is preparing to turn the tables on '
moderate' '
Palestinian' President
Mahmoud Abbas Abu Mazen. Economy Minister Naftali Bennett told Army Radio on Sunday morning that Israel is preparing to file a war crimes suit against Abu Mazen in the International Criminal Court for
financing terrorism.
“We are currently preparing an indictment for war crimes against
[Abbas] based on two rationales,” Bennett said. “The first is the daily
cash transfers to Hamas, which is firing missiles on Israeli citizens,
and the second is the direct financing of murderous terrorists
themselves.”
In order for the ICC to try the Palestinian leader,
Israel would first need to formally join. Only then would it be able to
lodge a complaint with the ICC prosecutor, who would need to decide
whether to launch an investigation.
Responding to recent developments, Shurat Hadin – Israel Law Center
said that although it has been doing serious case-intensive work on
potential International Criminal Court (ICC) complaints against the
Palestinians for a long time, the issue was now "becoming a game for
politicians, with less background on the issue, yelling slogans."
The
NGO added that some politicians have been raising allegations against
the Palestinians for crimes which the ICC does not even handle or which
would not be taken seriously by the ICC.
In contrast, Shurat Hadin
said it used a Facebook campaign since April 2013 to gather serious
allegations for potential concrete complaints against Palestinian
leaders to the ICC.
Arutz Sheva adds some quotes from
Bennett's Facebook page.
"Every year we renew a 'festival of threats': if we don't do what the
PA wants, they will go to the UN, they will turn into a country and
slam us at the Hague," Bennett wrote. "This is their 'judgement day'
weapon. A Defense Minister once gave it this name: the 'political
tsunami."
"But it's time to change this concept," he declared. "This is not the PA's 'judgement day' weapon. The rifle is empty."
"There is good reason why the Palestinians are not members of the
Hague, and not members of the UN," he continued. "There is a reason why
the gun is almost empty. What should be done about this threat?
Understand what it is, stop being afraid - and, of course, act on it."
Bennett noted that threats against Israel at the Hague may look
menacing on paper, but will probably not change much in reality.
"A lawsuit against us in the Hague will have Israel join the ranks of
other distinguished countries brought to court there, such as the US
and UK, and no one is telling London to withdraw from their land over
it," he stated.
If anything, according to Bennett, "Israel and other countries should bring the PA to the Hague over war crimes."
...
"There are two reasons for this: first - the PA's killing and terror
against innocent people," he continued. "The Palestinians deliberately
fired thousands of rockets at schools, hospitals and kindergartens.
Shooting to harm civilians is clearly a war crime."
Bennett also shot down possible counter-arguments to this, including the claim that the PA and Hamas are utterly unconnected.
"The PA leadership in Ramallah will tell them that it is Hamas who
shoots at civilians, not them," he said. "But this is like saying that
it is [Justice Minister Tzipi Livni's party - ed.] HaTnua that is
conducting negotiations with the PA, not the State of Israel. "
"Hamas is a political movement operating under the PA umbrella in
Gaza," he fired. "[PA Chairman Mahmoud] Abbas transfers funds every
month from the PA to Gaza for 'public servants' there."
"He believes that Gaza is part of the same 'Palestine' that he asks
the UN to unilaterally establish. Therefore, he is responsible for
Hamas's war crimes."
...
The second accusation Israel should launch against the PA, according to Bennett, is over its ongoing incitement against Israel.
"Every month the PA issues stipends to murders of women and children
that Israel released [as part of preconditions to negotiations - ed.],
as well as to those who are still in prison" Bennett noted. "They tell
murderers: go kill a Jew and instead of receiving compensation now,
you'll receive compensation later."
"This is encouraging terror. This is incitement."
Sorry, but I'm opposed to joining the ICC. I don't believe they'll judge our claims fairly, I don't believe they'll convict Abu Mazen or the 'Palestinians,' and even if by some miracle they do convict them, I don't believe that anything will come from a conviction (look at Sudan's Omar al-Bashir - he hasn't suffered much by being convicted, has he?).
On the other hand, we will expose ourselves to suits in the ICC. We have had very bad experiences with international tribunals and with anything connected to the UN. Why would we join and expose ourselves like that?
As to the picture at the top, guess who financed the
Munich Olympics massacre?
Labels: Abu Mazen, International Criminal Court, Naftali Bennett, Palestinian Authority, terror funding
'Palestinians' plan B?
Jonathan Schanzer warns that with the likely collapse of the current 'negotiations,' the 'Palestinians' have a plan B which consists of seeking recognition from the United Nations and its agencies. And there's little that Israel - or even the United States - can do to stop it. It's a
diplomatic intifada.
Even amidst the peace talks, the Palestinians have used the 194
campaign as leverage. In early November, for example, the Palestinian
Monetary Authority announced that it had obtained full membership in the
International Association of Deposit Insurers [16]. Senior Palestinian official Nabil Shaath
[17] also warned that the Palestinians could use the "weapon" of taking
claims against Israel in the International Criminal Court. Shaath
added, "There are organizations that await our application, and ask us
when are we applying."
Abbas himself has threatened
[18], "If we don't obtain our rights through negotiations, we have the
right to go to international institutions." Palestinian official Hanan
Ashrawi also warned that the Palestinian leadership was ready to join sixteen agencies [19] beginning in April 2014. "Everything is in place and will be set in motion," Ashrawi claimed. By late December, Saeb Erekat told Maan News Agency [20] that there were no less than sixty-three member agencies of the UN that the PLO sought to join.
And while the exact strategy has not been released, on January 25, Maan News Agency
[21] reported that a PLO committee had reached an internal agreement on
how to "take the Palestinian plight to the UN and its various bodies."
This included "signing international conventions and joining UN agencies
and different bodies." Among the most important of these bodies was
said to be the International Criminal Court (ICC), "because that will
enable the PA to sue the Israeli occupation over war crimes and crimes
against humanity."
Israeli officials quietly admit that the ICC is only one agency on a
short list of international bodies that they view as red lines. They
include the International Telecommunications Union (ITU), the
International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), the International
Maritime Organization (IMO), the World Trade Organization (WTO) and
INTERPOL. The concern for Israel is not that, not only would the
Palestinians gain acceptance as a state through these agencies (and do
so outside of the bilateral peace process), but that the Palestinians
would also try to isolate Israel from these agencies, which are crucial
to Israeli commerce, security and/or diplomacy.
Other Palestinian memberships would simply be insulting. For example,
Palestinians seek to join FIFA and then disqualify Israel from the
international soccer association. Indeed, Israel is growing increasingly
concerned that the Palestine 194 campaign is about to become part of
the larger strategy of Boycott, Divest and Sanctions (BDS). The campaign
has scored some small successes in academia, with a handful of European
businesses joining, too. But should the majority of UN member states
embrace the strategy of shunning Israel from multiple international
organizations, BDS could evolve into a real threat to Israel's
legitimacy.
The Palestinians, for their part, know that if they take new steps in
this direction, it will open up a whole new front in the
Palestinian-Israeli conflict. This explains, in part, why Palestinian
officials have kept a lid on their strategy. However, Palestinian
officials in the past have been quick to point out that they do not view
the Palestine 194 campaign as antithetical to bilateral negotiations
with Israel. Indeed, they see it as a means to enhance their negotiating
position. But now that talks are ongoing, Palestinian officials will
not discuss how this dual-track strategy works, particularly in light of
U.S. opposition to the 194 track. Instead, Palestinian officials
articulate their full-throated support of the Kerry initiative. At least
most of the time [22].
For Washington, there is more at stake here than a Nobel Prize for
Obama, Kerry and Indyk. Washington maintains its laws prohibiting the
funding of UN agencies when the PLO gains membership. That law did not
change following the UNESCO debacle. This, of course, means that the US
could be forced to choose between the State of Palestine and sixty-three
different UN agencies.
Some may not seem like a loss—such as the International Olive Council [23]. However, others, such as the World Health Organization or the International Court of Justice, could be bruising.
There's a lot that the United States could do to fight this using the power of the purse. But with Obama in charge, it's unlikely that the US will do anything to fight it.
Read the whole thing.
Labels: International Criminal Court, Interpol, Palestinian state RIGHT NOW syndrome, UNESCO, United Nations, United Nations General Assembly, World Health Organization
Report: Israel to pay $20 million to settle Mavi Marmara claims
Turkey's Daily Hurriyet is reporting that
Israel has agreed to pay $20 million in 'compensation' to the families of the terrorists who were killed on the Mavi Marmara in May 2010. Are we nuts?
Israel apologized to Turkey on March 22, 2013, but the normalization
process could not be completed because of differences on the amount of
compensation and its legal definition. The two countries’ diplomats met
at least four times last year, and the chances of an agreement appear to
be rising.
“The amount of compensation for those who were
killed and wounded in the Mavi Marmara operation, plus the damages
inflicted on the vessel, will be around a few million dollars,” sources
said, without giving further details.
Earlier press reports suggested the difference between Turkey and Israel
on the amount of money was quite high, but the parties appear to have
sought a way to find a middle point in a bid to make a deal possible.
Another problematic issue with regard to the compensation was its legal definition, as Turkey had insisted that Israel accept liability on the attack and the killing of Turkish citizens. Sources underlined Israel
could accept responsibility, albeit on the condition that it be given a
strong assurance that future criminal cases will not be opened against
the Israeli commanders and soldiers who were involved in the attack.
In
addition, the deal to be reached between the two countries will
automatically abort ongoing criminal cases against Israeli soldiers. The
Israeli side wants the agreement to be signed to end the legal dispute
between the two parties, as well as provide an opportunity for political
reconciliation.
Both countries’ diplomatic sources stressed
that although negotiations with regard to the deal are nearing
completion, they have been looking for the approval of their respective
prime ministers to move forward. In the event that the two countries
sign the deal, they will also have to exchange ambassadors immediately
so the normalization of ties can become more visible.
Diplomatic sources noted that Turkey was on the eve of a very critical election process and that Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan might use the agreement with Israel
as another foreign policy victory, in the way he did last year when
Israeli Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu officially apologized to him
following a direct intervention by U.S. President Barack Obama.
I would bet on Sultan Erdogan killing this deal with some last-minute demand, but even if he doesn't, do you trust the Turks not to turn around (or to let their citizens turn around) and go to the International Criminal Court anyway? I don't.
Labels: International Criminal Court, Mavi Marmara, outrageous apologies, Recep Tayyip Erdogan
BWAHAHAHAHA: 'Palestinians' want to take Kerry to ICC for 'threatening' Abu Bluff
This is not a parody....
The Fatah terror organization wants to sue US Secretary of State John FN Kerry before the
International Criminal Court for - get this - threatening the life of '
moderate' '
Palestinian' President
Mahmoud Abbas Abu Mazen. This is from the first link.
US Secretary of State John Kerry recently threatened Palestinian
Authority President Mahmoud Abbas that he would meet the same fate as
his predecessor, Yasser Arafat, if he turned down Washington’s proposals
for peace with Israel, a Palestinian source was quoted Sunday as
saying.
Jamal Muhaissen, a senior Fatah official in the West Bank,
said that if the report about Kerry’s threat to Abbas is true, “this
shows that Israel assassinated Yasser Arafat after receiving a green
light from the US Administration.”
Muhaissen said that Kerry’s threat comes in wake of his failure to
impose a settlement on Israel that is “consistent with international
law.”
Kerry should not hold the Palestinians responsible for his failure with the Israelis, the Fatah official added.
“If
true, Kerry’s threat paves the way for bringing him before the
International Criminal Court for threatening the life of an elected
Palestinian president,” Muhaissen said.
Threatening the life of a
WHAT?
But wait for it - it gets better.
A Palestinian source told the daily Rai al-Youm that Abbas angrily
stormed out of a four-hour meeting with Kerry in Ramallah after the
latter exerted pressure on him to accept the proposals.
The source claimed that Kerry told Abbas that his fate would not be “less than that of Yasser Arafat.”
Does Kerry know
something we don't?
But wiat for it: There's more.
Kerry’s proposals were received with shock and rejection by Abbas, the source added.
The source said that Kerry’s proposals do not meet the minimum of Palestinian aspirations and Abbas’s promises to his people.
“Abbas
wants future generations to remember him as a hero who managed to
achieve for his people what the largest Arab powers and parties failed
to obtain in all their wars with Israel,” the unnamed source explained.
Well, given that Abu Mazen was convinced that he would
get more by rejecting Olmert's offer in 2008 and Netanyahu is offering less, it's no great surprise he's disappointed.
But why did Kerry think this would end differently? What could go wrong?
Labels: Abu Mazen, International Criminal Court, John Kerry
