ICC prosecutor displaying ‘clear double standard’ on Gaza: Euro-Med

The Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor (Euro-Med) says the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) has displayed a “clear double standard” in dealing with the crimes of Israel against the Palestinians in Gaza.

It is “deeply concerned that the ICC is unable to fulfill its mandate and that this will cause irreversible harm (to) the rights of the Palestinian people,” the Geneva-based organization said in a statement on Thursday.

“The ICC should treat the crime of genocide committed by Israel in the Gaza Strip with the utmost seriousness,” it said.

The rights organization said the International Court of Justice (ICJ) has already verified suspicions that genocide has been committed by Israel in the besieged Palestinian territory.

On January 26, the ICJ rendered a ruling in which it acknowledged that there was a plausible suspicion that Israel is acting contrary to its obligations in terms of the Genocide Convention in carrying out its military operations in Gaza since October 7, 2023. The ICJ ordered Israel to take all possible measures to shield the Palestinian people and prevent the crime of genocide.

Euro-Med also said, “There are evident disparities in the way cases submitted to the ICC are handled, particularly when contrasting the approach taken to address the Palestinian situation with the Ukrainian crisis.”

The Euro-Med Monitor said the crimes committed by Israel have gone far beyond the destruction of civilian infrastructure and property.

“Israel has not only demolished several power plants in the Gaza Strip,” said Euro-Med Monitor, “but has also caused extensive damage to over two-thirds of civilian property and objects.”

“These crimes have destroyed the lives of the Gaza Strip’s entire population, effectively annihilating Gazans through acts of genocide including mass and deliberate killing; the deliberate and indiscriminate targeting of civilians, including thousands of women and children; starvation; deprivation of basic materials; forced transfer and displacement; the cutting off of water and electricity; denial of medical treatment; comprehensive illegal blockade; obstruction of relief supplies; the destruction of cultural, historical, and religious objects, as well as of hospitals, none of which are military objectives by any means; arbitrary arrest; enforced disappearance; torture; inhuman treatment; rape; looting of property; and use of prohibited weapons.”

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Elsewhere in the statement, the rights organization urged the ICC to open an investigation into whether the prosecutor complied with the principles of independence and impartiality in carrying out his responsibilities in the Palestinian case. It raised deep concerns about the ICC prosecutor’s commitment, specifically to the standards of integrity, professionalism, neutrality, independence, non-discrimination, and impartiality, in his work.

"Perpetrators in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (oPt) continue to act with complete historical immunity from punishment or accountability, and the international community as a whole has failed over the years to prove otherwise."

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