Palestinians give to ICC details of alleged Israeli crimes

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) ' Palestinian leaders on Friday handed what they called evidence of Israeli crimes committed in the recent outburst of violence to prosecutors at the International Criminal Court.Foreign Minister Riad Malki said the Palestinians submitted details to Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda of what they described as extra-judicial killings of Palestinians as well as home demolitions and other forms of collective punishment.Bensouda launched a preliminary probe in January into possible crimes committed on Palestinian territory. In June, Malki handed her a file detailing possible Israeli war crimes in Gaza and settlement construction in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.The preliminary ICC probe aims to establish if there are grounds to open a full-scale investigation. It is unclear when it will be completed.Malki said Friday he wants the court to finish it quickly to deter further deaths.If Israel "feels impunity and there is no process of accountability, then what will deter Israel from multiplying the numbers of victims" each day' he asked. "I think it's important for Israel to get messages ' clear messages and strong messages ' and that's why we are pushing for expediting the preliminary examination."There was no immediate comment from Israel on the Palestinians' actions. The Palestinian Authority has joined the Hague-based court. Israel is not a member and rejects the court's authority.The Palestinians' visit to the court comes amid a surge in violent clashes between Palestinians and Israelis.In all, 11 Israelis have been killed in Palestinian attacks in the past six weeks, while 66 Palestinians were killed by Israeli fire. Of those, 40 were said by Israel to have been involved in attacks or attempted attacks, most of them stabbings.Israel has blamed the attacks on what it says is anti-Israel incitement by Palestinian political and religious leaders. Palestinians say the violence is largely driven by the hopelessness many Palestinians feel after nearly half a century of Israeli military rule, with no end in sight.Rights groups have accused Israeli troops of using excessive force in some cases, a charge that Israel's military has denied.Israel has revived a policy of demolishing the homes of alleged assailants, portrayed by rights groups as collective punishment. The Israeli military had previously suspended the practice for several years as counterproductive.Join the conversation about this story
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