Middle East Monitor / March 23, 2021
The Israeli government has said that it will not allow any economic project to be implemented in the occupied territories unless the Palestinian Authority (PA) stops cooperating with the ICC probe into Israeli war crimes, Quds Net said yesterday.
Reporting Israeli Broadcasting Corporation Makan, Quds Net said that Israel will not carry out economic cooperation with the Palestinians unless the PA pledges not to cooperate with the ICC regarding the investigation into Israeli war crimes.
It added that Makan said that several countries had requested Israel launch economic programmes in the occupied territories.
According to Quds Net, Makan reported that Israel is planning to strip senior PA officials from their VIP privileges, noting that the Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki has already had his travel rights revoked.
On 3 March, ICC Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda announced the initiation of an official investigation into possible war crimes by Israel committed in the occupied West Bank and blockaded Gaza Strip.
The decision was welcomed by the PA, but both Israel and the US strongly condemned the move.
