The International Criminal Court (ICC) has launched a formal investigation into alleged war crimes in the Palestinian territories.
According to Dawn, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called the move "the essence of anti-Semitism", while Palestinian officials closed the Gaza Strip, which has been closed since June 2014, along with the Israeli-occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem. He lauded the decision of ICC Chief Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda as an "urgent and necessary" inquiry into the situation.
The move puts the Hague-based tribunal, which has been under constant criticism from Israel and its ally the United States, in the midst of one of the world's most difficult conflicts and threats.
Fatou Bensouda said he had decided that there were "acceptable potential cases" on both sides and that the investigation focused on the 2014 Gaza conflict, which killed more than 2,000 people.
"Ultimately, our main concern should be for the victims of long-standing crimes of violence and insecurity on both the Palestinian and Israeli sides, which have caused deep sorrow and frustration on all sides," the prosecutor said.
ICC judges paved the way for a war crimes investigation when they ruled a month ago that the court had jurisdiction over the situation because of Palestinian membership.
The investigation will focus on Operation Protective Edge, which was launched by Israel in the summer of 2014 with the stated goal of stopping rocket fire by Hamas insurgents in the country.
The 2014 fighting killed about 2,250 Palestinians, mostly civilians and 74 Israelis, most of them soldiers.
Regarding the ICC's decision, Benjamin Netanyahu posted a video on Twitter in which he said, "Israel has been attacked this evening. The International Court of Justice in The Hague has reached a verdict that the Jews It is the essence of enmity.
Israeli Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi said the country would "take all necessary steps to protect its citizens and soldiers from legal persecution."
He said the investigation could affect the peace process.
On the other hand, the Palestinian Authority welcomed the decision.
Palestinian Foreign Minister Riaz al-Maliki said in a statement that "Israel's crimes against the Palestinian people, which are being carried out in an organized and large-scale manner, make this investigation necessary and urgent."
There was no immediate reaction from the United States to the decision.
The State Department said in February that it had "serious concerns" about the ICC's decision.
He said Israel should not be bound by the court because it is not a member.
In 2019, Fatou Bensouda said in his initial request for an investigation that there was a "reasonable basis" for committing crimes by members of the Israeli Defense Forces, Israeli authorities, Hamas and Palestinian armed groups.
The ICC prosecutor also said that there was scope for an investigation into the killings of Palestinian protesters since 2018.
