ICC delegation slated to visit Israel this month: reports

Delegates from the International Criminal Court are scheduled to visit Israel later this month to investigate allegations of war crimes, senior Palestinian sources have said.

According to the reports, published in Israel’s Haaretz newspaper, the delegation will arrive on 27 June to conduct a preliminary investigation into whether serious abuses of international law, such as crimes against humanity, have been committed in the occupied Palestinian territories and whether the court has jurisdiction over the case.

Independent legal sources told the Israeli daily that the visit was likely a sign that the ICC was taking the issue seriously, however, a senior Israeli official dismissed the visit’s significance saying “nothing about it testifies to the progress of the examination or its pace”.

“We will examine every request for a visit while taking into account all the relevant considerations, including Israel’s position that Palestine is not a state and therefore the court has no authority to consider the Palestinian complaint,” the source said while adding that Israeli authorities have not yet reviewed or discussed the prosecution requests.  

The ICC prosecutor’s office said that a visit was pending, but refused to confirm a date or provide specifics about the visit.

The Palestinian sources said the authorities in Ramallah were aware of the fact-finding mission which was aimed at determining whether or not there was a reasonable basis to open a full probe.

In case such an investigation is launched, the ICC could look at abuses committed by the Palestinians as well as the Israelis from June 2014, which would include the 50-day Gaza war last summer. More than 2,200 Palestinians – mostly civilians - were killed on the Palestinian side, while 73 were killed on the Israeli side, including 67 soldiers. The court is also expected to look at the issue of West Bank settlements that are deemed to be illegal under international law.

Palestine officially joined the ICC in April while Israel is not a member.