Palestine files criminal complaint against Israel with the International Court of Justice in The Hague

THE HAGUE, (Patria) - The State of Palestine, as a signatory to the Rome Statute, has filed a complaint with the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague against Israel, covering "all Israeli crimes and violations of the rights of the Palestinian people in the past, present, and future related to the Israeli colonial regime of settlement expansion in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem," according to a statement by the Palestinian National Commission responsible for cooperation with the ICC, Al Jazeera reports.

As reported by agencies, Palestinian Foreign Minister Riyad Maliki is scheduled to meet with ICC Chief Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda later today to submit the complaint.

Maliki will call on the court to assume its responsibilities and duties in achieving justice for the Palestinian people and to hold Israel, the occupying power, accountable for continuous crimes and human rights violations, the statement said.

It further states that the ICC is the competent body to investigate current Israeli crimes related to the illegal colonial expansion of settlements and to prosecute those who commit such crimes.

- In this context, the State of Palestine exercises its right as a state party to the ICC statute to report to the prosecutor's office the crimes committed by Israeli officials, the occupying power, against the Palestinian people - the statement, carried by the Palestinian agency Wafa, reads.

- The ICC is expected to launch a criminal investigation into the war crimes and crimes against humanity committed by Israel. The time has come to establish the accountability of Israeli war criminals and bring them to justice.