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Israel Rejects International Criminal Court Not To Pay For War Crimes
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Israeli war crimes in the Palestinian territories need no proof.
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JERUSALEM, June
30 (IslamOnline & News Agencies) – Fearing to see its officers,
security services officials or politicians arrested or tracked down
abroad, Israel Sunday reaffirmed its refusal to take part in the
International Criminal Court (ICC) on the eve of its launch in The
Hague.
Israeli Attorney
General Eliakim Rubinstein told a weekly cabinet meeting that
Israel
could not ratify the treaty creating the ICC, a body, which he said,
could become "politicized", Israeli Military Radio said.
Rubinstein was
also afraid that
Israel
could be put on trial for "war crimes" because of its policy
of building Jewish settlements in the occupied Palestinian
territories, according to Agence France-Presse (AFP).
"We have fears ... that this court could act out of political
motivations, even anti-Semitic ones," Rubinstein said.
"We do not
know who will be the judges, the prosecutors, the manner in which this
court will function. But it has listed in its statutes all population
transfers in an occupied territory as a war crime," he later told
Israeli Public Radio.
"Or measures
could be implemented against Israeli settlements or certain Israeli
neighborhoods in
Jerusalem
."
Two weeks ago,
the Israeli government's legal council informed parliament of the
decision not to ratify the treaty, which empowers the ICC to prosecute
crimes against humanity, genocide and war crimes.
Israel
reluctantly signed the 1998 Treaty of Rome on
December 31, 2000
, but it now opted to follow the example of the
United States
in rejecting the tribunal expected to come on stream in
The Hague
on
July 1, 2002
.
Former Israeli Justice Minister Yossi Beilin, however, criticized as
"stupid and deceiving the decision taken by the extreme right
government which believes that the whole world is against
Israel
".
Israel
built around 200 settlements in the
West Bank
and Gaza Strip since occupying the territories in 1967.
In total, 160
countries voted to approve the establishment of the ICC and seven
objected including Japan, the United States and Israel. The Israeli
delegation objected the founding of the court following its surprise
to see that West Bank settlements fall under the court's jurisdiction,
reported Israeli daily newspaper Ha’aretz.
The new court will prosecute those responsible for genocide, crimes
against humanity, and war crimes that take place on or after July 1,
2002, but it will step in only when countries are unwilling or unable
to dispense justice themselves.
The vote was the first of three stages carried out before the court
can began prosecuting.
The second stage was the signing of the treaty, followed by the
ratification of the treaty. At the end of December, 2001, the last day
to sign the treaty, Israel signed and even attached a letter praising
the goals of the court and highlighting Israel's obligation to
international law, in light of the suffering it experienced throughout
its history.
"Israeli representatives," the letter said, "who carry
in their hearts and their thoughts the collective and sometimes even
personal impressions of the Holocaust … contributed enthusiastically
and seriously throughout all the stages of the treaty's preparations.
Now, while they carry the same feeling of being on a mission, they
support the work of the preparation committee for the International
Criminal Court."
However, it seems the Israelis came to realize how risky it is to
ratify the ICC. Israeli Attorney Irit Kahn, head of the international
department of the State Prosecutor's Office, said "There is no
room for hysteria but we must learn and be prepared. The question is
from what date the court can prosecute, and who falls under its
jurisdiction.
“The court can
prosecute from the moment of its official establishment, on
July 1, 2002
, and can press charges against citizens of any country, which
ratified the treaty, or against citizens of a country, which carried
out the crimes in a country, which ratified the treaty. Another
disturbing possibility would be if the UN Security Council makes a
request from the court," he was quoted by Ha’aretz.
According to Kahn, Israeli citizens, military officers and
decision-makers are vulnerable to the court's jurisdiction for actions
carried out in another country. Israelis fear that, once a Palestinian
state is established, they will have to pay for their crimes against
the Palestinians.
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