The pretrial chamber of the International Criminal Court on Friday determined that The Hague has jurisdiction to open criminal investigations against Israel and the Hamas terrorist group for alleged war crimes in the Gaza Strip, the West Bank, and east Jerusalem.
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The 2-1 decision, has cleared the way for Chief Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda to open a war crimes probe into IDF actions.
Back in 2019, Bensouda argued that there was a "reasonable basis" to open a war crimes probe into Israeli military actions in the Gaza Strip as well as Israeli settlement activity in Judea and Samaria, but as Israel is not a signatory of the Rome Statute from which The Hague draws its power, she asked the court to determine whether she has territorial jurisdiction before proceeding with the case.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu condemned the ruling as grossly biased.
"The ICC has again proved that it is a political body – not a judicial institution," he said in a statement. "The ICC ignores the real war crimes and instead pursues the State of Israel, a state with a strong democratic government that sanctifies the rule of law, and is not a member of the ICC.
"In this decision, the ICC violated the right of democracies to defend themselves against terrorism and played into the hands of those who undermine efforts to expand the circle of peace. We will continue to protect our citizens and soldiers in every way from legal persecution."
Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi called the decision one that "distorts the purpose of the ICC, which has become a political instrument for anti-Israel propaganda. This ruling rewards Palestinian terrorism and the PA's refusal to pursue negotiations with Israel."
Yisrael Beytenu leader Avigdor Lieberman also slammed the decision, saying, "At a time when the entire world is dealing with the corona crisis, the ICC has found the time to wage its own war, seeking to undermine Israel's right to defend itself against terrorism. This is a delusional, outrageous decision."
The Palestinian Authority, which joined the court in 2015 with the explicit purpose of pushing action against Israel, welcomed the ruling.
The decision is a "historic day for the principle of accountability," the Palestinian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
Nabil Shaath, a senior aide to Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, said the ruling proved that the Palestinians were right to go to the ICC.
"This is good news, and the next step is to launch an official investigation into Israel's crimes against our people," he said.
The Palestinian Authority's Civil Affairs Minister Hussein al-Sheikh called the decision "a victory for truth, justice, freedom and moral values in the world."
While the court would have a hard time prosecuting Israelis, it could issue arrest warrants that would make it difficult for Israeli officials to travel abroad. A case in the ICC would also be deeply embarrassing to the government.
The ICC could also potentially investigate crimes committed by Palestinian terrorists, including rocket firing by Gaza's Hamas rulers and other armed groups at Israel.
In a 60-page legal brief, the three-judge panel ruled that Palestine is a state party to the Rome Statute establishing the ICC. With one judge dissenting, it ruled that Palestine qualifies as the state on the territory in which the "conduct in question" occurred and that the court's jurisdiction extends to east Jerusalem, the West Bank and Gaza.
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