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A Palestinian ICC Gambit Would Reach Far Beyond Parties to the Conflict

(Washington Post) Eugene Kontorovich - If PA leader Mahmoud Abbas accepts the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court (ICC), that decision would have far-flung diplomatic and legal implications. One major consequence is that any subsequent investigation would certainly focus on alleged Palestinian crimes at least as surely as Israeli ones. Moreover, a potential ICC investigation could scrutinize the conduct of senior Hamas operatives based in Turkey and Qatar. The decision of the Special Court for Sierra Leone in the case of Charles Taylor, and other decisions by international criminal tribunals, shows that leaders residing outside the territory in which crimes are being committed can be convicted on the basis of their overall support and leadership of the organization carrying out the crimes. Indeed, all those - regardless of nationality or domicile - who plan, finance or support Palestinian terrorism could be investigated to the extent they plan crimes within what the Court would regard as Palestinian territory. The writer is a professor at Northwestern University School of Law.
2014-11-26 00:00:00
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