by ILH Staff and News Agencies
Move comes as Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas says he is "ready" to take confidence-building steps to make a two-state solution impossible.
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| Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas | File photo: EPA/Alaa Badarneh |
Palestinian Authority officials on Saturday called on the International Criminal Court in The Hague to expedite its investigation into alleged Israeli violations in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.
According to Israel National News, Ramallah's Foreign Ministry wants the ICC to make significant progress on its controversial probe of alleged human rights violations and "crimes" by the "occupation and the settlers" and demands they be "brought to justice."
"The escalation of the aggression of the occupation against our people continues in various forms, especially with regard to the continued demolition of houses and the distribution of demolition orders," a statement by the PA's Foreign Ministry said.
The demand came a week after Defense Minister Benny Gantz met with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas last week – a move that vexed right-wing Israeli politicians and Hamas alike.
Should the PA get its way at the ICC, Gantz, a former IDF chief of staff and a two-term defense minister, will be one of the Israel officials to potentially face the tribunal.
It is unclear how this demand reconciles with the fact that on Thursday, Abbas said he was "ready" to take confidence-building measures vis-à-vis Israel and restore calm in the Palestinian territories in an effort to advanced a two-state solution.
Abbas spoke following a meeting with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi and Jordan's King Abdullah in Cairo.
Egypt played a leading role in brokering the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas after 11 days of conflict in May in the Gaza Strip, and has since been trying to help reinforce the truce amid occasional renewed flare-ups of violence and to facilitate reconstruction in Gaza.
In Cairo, the three leaders pledged "to work together to refine a vision to activate efforts aimed at resuming negotiations, and work with brothers and partners to revive the peace process", according to a statement released by Egypt's presidency.
Peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians collapsed in 2014 and analysts say there is little prospect of reviving them, partly due to divisions between Abbas' Palestinian Authority and Hamas, the terrorist group that ousted Fatah from Gaza in a bloody coup in 2007.
In an address at the Cairo talks, Abbas said that although an escalation of Israeli "violations" had made a two-state solution in line with international law unattainable, the PA was committed to peaceful methods.
"We renew our readiness to work in this stage to prepare the atmosphere by the application of confidence-building steps that include achieving comprehensive calm in Palestinian lands," he said, according to a text published by THE state-run Palestinian news agency Wafa.
After Abbas met with Gantz, Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett quickly played down the idea of any move towards peace negotiations, though Israel also agreed to lend the Palestinian Authority $150 million.
Still, Bennett said in a Zoom conversation with officials of Jewish organizations in the United States on Friday that he intends to take steps to reduce tensions with the Palestinians despite the lack of "political breakthrough" with them.
"Everyone understands that we don't expect a political breakthrough in the near future," Bennett said. "There has always been a dichotomy – either move towards a Palestinian state or do nothing.
"I think that in many areas it is possible to act to reduce the problem ... especially in the economic field. I believe that employment and living with dignity can improve the situation. Two parties can take measures to reduce tensions and improve daily life," he said.
Asked about the meeting between Gantz and Abbas, Bennett said he did not intend to meet with Abbas because he had filed a complaint against Israel before the ICC.
"I also don't want to create the illusion of something that will not happen because a disappointment can have negative consequences. We will not take drastic measures, we will freeze the construction and take measures to stabilize the area," he said.
ILH Staff and News Agencies
Source: https://www.israelhayom.com/2021/09/05/report-pa-officials-urge-icc-to-expedite-probe-into-israeli-violations/
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