Palestine slams Israel settlement plan

Saeb Erekat slammed Israel’s decision to build 64 new settler units in the illegal Ramot settlement on Sunday, saying that Israel’s expansionist policies make a strong case for the Palestinians to sue the regime at the International Criminal Court (ICC).
 
“The ongoing Israeli settlement activities confirm our credible and true attitude to sue Israel before the International Criminal Court (ICC),” the chief Palestinian negotiator said.
 
The remarks came after Israeli officials approved the construction of the new settler units on Sunday.
 
More than half a million Israelis live in over 120 illegal settlements built since Israel’s occupation of the Palestinian territories of the West Bank including East Jerusalem al-Quds.
 
The UN and most countries regard the Israeli settlements as illegal because the territories were captured by Israel in the 1967 war and are hence subject to the Geneva Conventions, which forbid construction on the occupied lands.
 
Erekat said that the settlements will undermine the so-called peace process, adding, “We are now preparing two files to submit to the ICC; the first is settlement expansion and the second is related to committing war crimes in the Gaza Strip last summer.”
 
Palestine officially joined the ICC last month after its bid to be recognized as a sovereign state was rejected at the United Nations Security Council. The accession to the court enables the PA to have Israel prosecuted for committing war crimes and crimes against humanity.
 
Israel’s military assault on Gaza brought huge destruction to the coastal enclave. More than 2,200 Palestinians were killed and thousands more injured in the war that started in early July 2014 and lasted 50 days. More than 30 percent of Gaza’s population was also displaced in the wake of the conflict.