These reasons for the arrest warrant could apply to a dozen heads of state that I could mention offhand, and I'm just a layman in that field. Is there such a warrant issued already for Assad, president of Syria? Wasn't the recently deceased president of Iran called "The Butcher of Tehran" for a reason?
It has to happen in a place where the ICC has jurisdiction. Palestine has ratified the Rome Statue, and the crimes are happening in Palestine. Syria and Iran have not.
> It has to happen in a place where the ICC has jurisdiction.
Oh, convenient.
> Palestine has ratified the Rome Statue
There has not been a political entity called Palestine since the Rome statue was enacted. I believe that you are referring to The Palestinian Authority, the distinction is in fact important here in a conflict where words are often deliberately misapplied and misused in order to direct a narrative.
In any case, The Palestinian Authority does not rule the Gaza strip. Then were overthrown in a very bloody coup, 2005 or 2006, in which Hamas threw some 100 PA members off the top of the buildings.
> I believe that you are referring to The Palestinian Authority
You would be incorrect [0]. The UN recognizes a "State of Palestine" independent of the specific government, which includes both Gaza and the West Bank. This entity, the state of Palestine, not the PLA (that would be weird, like saying the Tory party is signatory to the Rome statute), is signatory to the Rome statute. The state of Palestine is a non-member observer state in the UN.
You're correct that it's good to be precise here, so you should do so around the specific political entity of Palestine when that is what is being discussed.
Terrific, thank you, I much appreciate the correction. You'll notice that I stated "I believe", showcasing the uncertainty. I appreciate any additional information to help wade through the mess of information and misinformation surrounding the conflict.
The question of Palestine's admissibility to ICC proceedings was subject to a sophisticated legal review years ago, in relation to a former case.
The gist of the argument can be gleaned from its sub-headings:
Palestine is a State for the purposes of the Statute under relevant
principles and rules of international law...... 25
C.1. The Montevideo criteria have been less restrictively applied in certain cases........ 25
C.2. It is appropriate to apply the Montevideo criteria less restrictively to Palestine, for
the purposes of the Rome Statute ..... 29
C.2.a. The Palestinian people have a right to self-determination and it has been
recognised that this implies a right to an independent and sovereign State of Palestine... 30
C.2.b. The exercise of the Palestinian people’s right to self-determination is being
obstructed by practices contrary to international law................... 32
C.2.c. Palestine has been recognised by a significant number of States.............. 34
C.2.d. No other State has sovereignty over the Occupied Palestinian Territory............ 35
C.2.e. Palestine’s status as a State Party must be given effect........ 36
C.2.f. The Prosecution’s alternative position is consistent with international law ........ 39
C.2.g. Participants’ arguments regarding a possible referral by the Security Council are
unclear.......... 40
D. The Oslo Accords do not Bar the Exercise of the Court’s Jurisdiction........ 40
D.1. The Oslo Accords regulated a gradual transfer of power to the Palestinian
Authority over most of the West Bank (excluding East Jerusalem) and Gaza.............. 40
Coincidentally, Josep Borrell, the foreign policy chief of the EU, announced earlier in the month that several of the bloc's member states intend to recognise Palestinian statehood on the 21st of May - today.
You forgot to mention that the coup attempt was by some Western powers and Fatah, against a democratically elected Hamas government, where western powers supplied weapons, intelligence, incentives and training for a coup. They just lost.
> Hamas threw some 100 PA members off the top of the buildings
Also you should support this, because this seems 1) ridiculous given the total number of casualties and nature of the fighting 2) I can only find claim of 2 persons being thrown off building, 1 from Fatah and 1 from Hamas.
Eg. hundred page report from PCHR named "Report on Bloody Fighting in the Gaza Strip from 7 to 14 June 2007" doesn't mention 100 PA thrown off the rooftops.
