Al-Khrenij congratulates Palestine on ICC membership

KUWAIT, April 1 (KUNA) -- Kuwait's Parliament Deputy-Speaker Mubarak Al-Khrenij congratulated Palestinian leadership and President Mahmoud Abbas Wednesday on their country's joining the International Criminal Court (ICC) officially.
Palestine's membership in ICC will contribute to solving several issues between the Palestinians and the Zionist occupation such as providing a legal and legitimate warrant to bring Israeli war criminals to justice for the crimes they committed against the Palestinian people, Al-Khrenij said in a press statement.
The Kuwaiti MP also mentioned that he has phoned the Palestinian Ambassador to Kuwait and expressed his best wishes for this "blessed" and "well-earned" step in supporting the Palestinian cause.
Earlier, the ICC officially announced Palestine as the 123rd member in the Court, a move widely seen as an opportunity to bring accountability to years of Israel's violations against the Palestinian people.
Palestinians signed the court's founding treaty last January and it came into force today.
ICC Chief Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda opened a preliminary investigation mid-January.
Palestine lodged on 1 January 2015 a declaration under article 12 (3) of the Rome Statute, the basic document of the court, accepting the jurisdiction of the ICC over alleged crimes committed "in the occupied Palestinian territory, including East Jerusalem, since June 13, 2014." Palestine deposited on 2 January 2015 its instrument of accession to the Rome Statute with the UN Secretary General.
Acting in his capacity as depositary, the UN Secretary General on 6 January accepted Palestine's accession, and thus the state became the 123rd State Party to the ICC, effectively as of today. (end) rkf.tab.ma