Former ICC prosecutor Luis Moreno Ocampo said in an AP interview in August that the Palestinians have the right to decide that the court has jurisdiction dating back to November 2012, when the U.N. General Assembly voted overwhelmingly to upgrade the Palestinians' status from a U.N. observer to a non-voting observer state. Ocampo said there should be “no discussion” on that.
The General Assembly's recognition of Palestine as an observer state made it possible for the Palestinians to join the International Criminal Court and other U.N. bodies.
Once it becomes a member, Palestine could seek to have Israeli military or political figures prosecuted for alleged crimes involving settlement construction on occupied lands or actions by the military that cause heavy civilian casualties.
“Palestine's move to join the ICC means that individuals implicated in war crimes committed in or from Palestinian territory could be held to account,” said Balkees Jarrah, international justice counsel at Human Rights Watch. “Giving the court a mandate may deter the abuses that fuel animosity and make returning to peace talks more difficult—whether settlement expansion, Israeli attacks on civilians in Gaza, or unlawful Hamas rocket strikes.”
But joining the court also exposes the Palestinians themselves to charges of war crimes over rocket attacks by the extremist group Hamas on Israeli population centers and other violence against Jewish targets.
Mansour said the Palestinians aren't afraid.
“We uphold the law so high, and we are not afraid of the judgment of the law, especially international law,” he said.
Mansour also delivered documents to the U.N. Friday for Palestine to join 15 other U.N. conventions, treaties and agreements.
These include the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty, the Law of the Sea convention, and the convention lifting the statute of limitations for war crimes and crimes against humanity. The Palestinians also seek to join conventions against transnational organized crime, and on the political rights of women, biological diversity, movement of hazardous waste and the safety of U.N. personnel.
A U.S. official warned of consequences.
“It should come as no surprise that there will be implications for this step, but we continue to review,” said the official, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly.
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