Palestine’s First Communication of Information to the ICC Regarding Violations of International Humanitarian and Human Rights Law

batch of information to the International Criminal Court in order to assist with its

preliminary examination into crimes committed on the territory of the occupied

State, including East Jerusalem, since June 13 2014. The delivery of this

information is considered a fundamental step in the process of ending Israeli

impunity and bringing justice to the Palestinian people.

     No. The communication focuses on providing information to the ICC

Prosecutor so as to supplement a preliminary examination in advance of an official

investigation. If the Prosecutor finds that the information reaches the threshold

required for an investigation, she will proceed with the investigation. Palestine is

simply contributing information to facilitate the preliminary examination initiated

16 of January 2015.

     As a State Party to the Rome Statute, the State of Palestine may make

referrals to the Court and may choose to do so at a later stage if it deems necessary.

This will depend upon how the preliminary investigation progresses.

     The communication reflects the strong consensus amongst the Palestinian

people that we seek accountability and the prevention of crimes of concern to the

international community as a whole. Palestine’s accession to the Rome Statute was

the outcome of a long process of internal discussion between the PLO, political

parties, civil society and other actors within Palestinian society, reaching the

consensus that Palestine should be a State Party to the ICC. In effect, this

submission reflects the State and its institutions’ willingness to assist the Office ofthe Prosecutor by providing information relevant to her preliminary examination

of the crimes committed in our territory.

     The files to be presented to the court refer to war crimes and crimes

committed by individuals of the Israeli leadership. It will focus primarily on

providing the context within which a pattern of systematic interrelated crimes have

been committed within and throughout the Palestinian state, including through the

Israeli settlement regime, and the blockade and attacks against the Gaza Strip and

civilian population.

there are practices and policies which either triggered the commission of these

crimes, or which are criminal in and of themselves, or both. The files include

statistics on settlements, prisoners, as well as statistics on Israel's aggression and

attack on Gaza 2014

     The communication will highlight the context within which a widespread

and systematic attack by Israeli leaders and agents is continually being perpetrated

against the Palestinian people.

     The State of Palestine, as recognized by the United Nations, includes all of

the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and the Gaza governorates.

The communication is in line with the declaration lodged by the State of

Palestine on 1 January 2015 under article 12(3) of the Rome Statute in which

Palestine accepted the jurisdiction of the ICC. Consistent with the Rome Statute,

the communication outlines crimes committed in the occupied State of Palestine,

including East Jerusalem, since 13 June 2014.

     The Higher National Committee prepared the communication file for the

ICC. This committee includes members of the PLO Executive Committee,

ministers and relevant ministerial bodies, and representatives of all political parties,

security forces and professional unions.By joining the court, Palestine seeks accountability for the widespread and blatant criminality which persists against it in hopes that this will provide a measure of protection by deterring future crime.