MIDDLE EAST FORUM
The U.S. Should Sanction the International Criminal Court
Richard Kemp, Rafael Bardaji
September 1, 2024

In a submission to the ICC last week, Khan doubled down on his demands to arrest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Yoav Gallant. He was responding to a multitude of submissions made to the Pre-Trial Chamber contesting the warrants he demands.Most of these concerned the ICC’s jurisdiction over Israel rather than the substance of his allegations which we believe, on the basis of our own extensive investigations in Israel and Gaza, are themselves without merit. Khan’s arguments in favour of jurisdiction amount to legal contortions to achieve a political agenda, reflecting the approach to Israel of this highly politicised court. They are also extremely dangerous, not to Israel alone, but to all Western democracies. Israel, like the US and many other countries, is not a state party to the ICC. READ MORE

TIMES OF ISRAEL ‘State of Palestine’ takes seat in UN General Assembly despite lack of full membership Palestinians took a seat among member states at the UN General Assembly on Tuesday, a new right accorded to the Palestinian Authority’s delegation despite it not being a full member of the body. In May, an overwhelming majority of the General Assembly asserted that Palestinians deserved full membership, a move that has been blocked by the United States, which along with Israel says recognition of Palestinian statehood must come through a peace agreement.