The Hague, MINA – Fatou Bensouda, Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) on Wednesday said to open an investigation over war crimes in the occupied Palestinian territories.
Fatou Bensouda said in a statement that the investigation “will be carried out independently, impartially and objectively, without fear or assistance,” Anadolu Agency reported.
The investigation began nearly a month after the ICC decided it had jurisdiction over crimes committed in the Palestinian territories, including those occupied by Israel since 1967.
The ICC investigation could pave the way for legal proceedings against Tel Aviv for war crimes in the Palestinian territories.
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“My office welcomes the opportunity to engage with the Palestinian Authority and the Government of Israel, to determine how justice can best be served within the framework of complementary domestic and international action,” Bensouda said in a statement.
“In this way, we can hope to achieve accountability and justice for the interests of the victims of the crimes of the Rome Statute of Palestine and Israel,” he added.
Palestine is a party to the founding agreement of the ICC Rome Statute since 2015, and has long undertaken diplomatic efforts to investigate alleged war crimes by Israel in the occupied territories. (T/RE1)
Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)
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