UNITED NATIONS — Palestinians took the last formal step Friday to join the International Criminal Court, seeking to pursue war-crimes charges against Israel related to the recent war in Gaza and to Jewish settlements in Palestinian territories.
The high-stakes move has drawn threats of retaliation from Israel and is vehemently opposed by the U.S. as an obstacle to reaching an Israeli-Palestinian peace deal.
After submitting the documents to join the ICC, Palestinian Ambassador Riyad Mansour said Palestinians are seeking to raise alleged crimes previously committed by Israel, including those that occurred during last summer’s war in Gaza. He said the Palestinians will be seeking justice for Israeli settlements on Palestinian territory, which he said constitute “a war crime” under the Rome statute that established the court.
