. . . Arthur Stark, Chairman, William Daroff, CEO, and Malcolm Hoenlein, Vice Chair of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, issued the following statement:
“We reject the unjustified assertion of jurisdiction by judges at the International Criminal Court (ICC) in cases brought by the Palestinian Authority. This politically and ideologically motivated attempt by the ICC to impose itself into matters that are well beyond its mandate violates its purpose, distorts international law, and undermines its own legitimacy as an unbiased judicial forum.
The ICC’s jurisdiction limits its involvement to disputes between sovereign states. According to the criteria established by international law and the ICC’s own founding statute, it is demonstrably and irrefutably clear that the Palestinian Authority is not a sovereign state. We appreciate the US State Department expression of ‘serious concerns about the ICC’s attempts to exercise its jurisdiction over Israeli personnel’ and the statement of the Biden Administration’s view that the Palestinian Authority is not a sovereign state and therefore is ‘not qualified to obtain membership as a state, or participate as a state in international organizations, entities, or conferences, including the ICC.’
To claim otherwise is patently false and reflects the demonstrated anti-Israel bias of ICC prosecutor Fatou Bensouda, who has led these efforts to target the Jewish State. The Palestinian Authority has further obstructed the path to peace by continuing to flout the agreed upon basis for negotiations. In appealing to the ICC, Palestinian leaders are attempting to dictate a political end through judicial means and thereby avoid negotiations. These actions serve to exacerbate existing tensions, and will not achieve progress toward a viable and lasting resolution to a conflict that can only be resolved through direct negotiations between the parties.
We urge other countries to join the United States in objecting to this deeply flawed action by the ICC.”
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