Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused the International Criminal Court (ICC) of sophisticated anti-Semitism. The corresponding statement was circulated by his office, TASS reports.
The head of government called the fact that the court in The Hague is investigating Israel on “absolutely false charges of war crimes” as a manifestation of intolerance. “This tribunal was created to prevent atrocities, such as the genocide of the Jewish people by the Nazis, and now it is attacking the only Jewish state,” Netanyahu said.
According to the Israeli prime minister, the ICC declares it a war crime that Jews live in their homeland, and also claims that soldiers are committing a war crime when they protect Israelis from terrorists. “I promise that we will defend our soldiers, who defend us, defend our homeland with all our might, as a united front,” concluded Netanyahu, calling the court’s decision flagrant injustice.
On February 5, the ICC decided to extend its jurisdiction to the West Bank, East Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip, which makes it possible to open cases against the Israeli military. In May 2018, Palestine sent a request to the prosecutor’s office to investigate the situation. The document contained a request to investigate crimes falling under the jurisdiction of the court in the territory of the State of Palestine since June 13, 2014.
The conflict between Palestine and Israel has been going on since 1948. The parties claim ownership and sovereignty over the same territory of the former British Mandate of Palestine. In addition, Israel is trying to annex the territories of the West Bank: Israeli settlements have been built there. The UN Security Council considers these territories to be occupied and Israel to be disputed.