From MEMRI
The following are excerpts from a Palestinian Authority TV interview
with Palestinian Representative at the U.N. Human Rights Council Ibrahim
Khreisheh. The interview aired on July 9, 2014 on Palestinian Authority
TV.
nterviewer: The popular demand is to appeal to the
International Criminal Court and to sign the Rome Statue. The demand is
to do this immediately. To what extent is this realistic? You are our
representative in all the international organizations. What can we gain
from such a step, and could we ourselves be indicted?
Ibrahim Khreisheh: I am not a candidate in any Palestinian
elections, so I don’t need to win popularity among the Palestinians. The
missiles that are now being launched against Israel – each and every
missiles constitutes a crime against humanity whether it hits or misses,
because it is directed at a civilian targets. What Israel does against
Palestinian civilians also constitutes crimes against humanity. With
regard to crimes of war under the Fourth Geneva Convention – the
settlements, the Judaization, the checkpoints, the arrests, and so on –
we find ourselves on very solid ground. However, there is a Palestinian
weakness with regard to the other issue. Therefore targeting civilians –
be it one civilian or a thousand – is considered a crime against
humanity.
Interviewer: This why Israel resorted to an attack against Gaza…
Ibrahim Khreisheh: Appealing to the ICC requires a consensus
in writing, by all Palestinian factions, so when a Palestinian is
arrested for his involvement in the killing of an Israeli citizen we
will not be blamed for extraditing him. Please note that many of our
people in Gaza appeared on TV and said that the Israeli army warned them
to evacuate their homes before the bombardment. In such a case, if
someone is killed, the law considers it a mistake rather than an
intentional killing, because [the Israelis] followed the legal
procedures. As for the missiles launched from our side… We never warn
anyone about where these missiles are about to fall, or about the
operations we carry out. Therefore, people should know more before they
talk emotionally about appealing to the ICC.
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