Two countries express “growing concern” over “escalating violence” in a referral to the International Criminal Court over possible crimes.
The Palestinian Foreign Ministry has welcomed Chile and Mexico’s demand for the International Criminal Court (ICC) to investigate crimes against civilians as Israel’s war on Gaza continues unabated.
Israeli attacks have devastated the Gaza Strip since Hamas fighters launched a surprise attack in Israel on October 7 that killed around 1,140 people, mostly civilians, according to Israeli officials. Israel responded with a relentless air and ground offensive that killed more than 24,600 people, about 70 percent of them children, women and the elderly, according to Gaza’s health ministry.
In a statement released Thursday, Mexico’s Foreign Ministry said the referral “is due to growing concern over the latest escalation of violence, particularly against civilian targets.”
He added that the Hague-based court was the appropriate forum to establish potential criminal liability, citing “numerous United Nations reports that detail numerous incidents that could constitute crimes within the jurisdiction of the ICC.”
Meanwhile, in Santiago, the Chilean capital, Foreign Minister Alberto van Klaveren told a news conference that the country supported “investigations into any possible war crimes… whether of war committed by Israelis or by Palestinians.”
The Palestinian Foreign Ministry welcomed the decision.
“This referral confirms the urgent need for the Court to fulfill its mandate, namely to deter, investigate and prosecute the most serious crimes of concern to the international community,” said a ministry statement on Friday.
“Israeli officials remain undeterred as they continue their genocidal war,” the statement added.
Mexico said it was closely following last week’s case before the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in which South Africa accused Israel of carrying out genocide in Gaza and demanded that the court order a emergency suspension of the Israeli military campaign. Israel rejected the accusation.
Both the ICJ and the ICC deal with cases of alleged genocide, with the former resolving disputes between states and the latter prosecuting individuals for crimes.
The ICC has opened an investigation into Israel as well as Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups for possible war crimes in the Palestinian territories in 2021.
ICC prosecutor Karim Khan said in November that the investigation “now extends to the escalation of hostilities and violence” since the October 7 attacks.
His remarks followed calls from South Africa, Bangladesh, Bolivia, Comoros and Djibouti for an ICC investigation into the conflict.
Israel is not a member of the ICC and does not recognize its jurisdiction.
