Palestine Joins International Criminal Court
After failing to secure the necessary support for a United Nations resolution to establish an independent Palestinian state, Palestine has joined the International Criminal Court with the goal of having Israelis arrested and tried for war crimes, despite the fact that a number of Palestinians may soon also find themselves in the court's crosshairs.
The New York Times reports that Palestinian action is so bold that Palestine risks serious consequences from the United States and Israel. Among those consequences are economic sanctions that may make life so unbearable for Palestinians they may take power away from Mahmoud Abbas and his Fatah party.
The decisions by Abbas to join the ICC and try to pass the UN resolution for an independent state are the result of Palestinians losing their patience with a US led peace process that has not stopped the advancement of illegal Israeli settlements on to Palestinian territory or brought about anything resembling peace in the region. That frustration has translated into a 35% approval rating for Abbas.
Knowing that his political life is jeopardy, Abbas took a gamble on the UN resolution which called for the establishment of a Palestinian state in 2017 and the Israeli withdrawal from the West Bank and East Jerusalem, according to Reuters. The measure failed to get the 9 votes it needed to pass after Britain abstained from voting and the United States and Australia voted against it.
The decision to join the ICC is part of a broader strategy of signing onto international agreements like the Geneva Convention to give Palestine the trappings and appearances of an official state. The strategy may be working, as a number of Western European nations have passed non-binding resolutions recognizing Palestine as a state.
