The international legal team assigned by the Palestinian Bar Association submitted a memorandum to the Office of the International Prosecutor yesterday, in response to Israel’s challenge to the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court and the legitimacy of the International Prosecutor’s requests to issue two arrest warrants against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his Defense Minister Yoav Galant.

The head of the international lawyers' team, Dr. Faisal Khazal, said in a press statement that reached "I" yesterday: "We requested in the memorandum from the International Criminal Court to reject the appeal of the defendants (Israel) due to the previous ruling on the matter and confirming the jurisdiction of the court. On the other hand, we submitted a defense as a precaution and precaution."

He added: “We mentioned in the memorandum that the Pre-Trial Chamber of the International Criminal Court issued a decision on February 5, 2021 by majority vote that the court has jurisdiction over crimes committed in the Palestinian territories occupied in 1967, and that this decision applies to the territories of the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, meaning that international crimes and violations are committed on territories that fall under the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court, and that the state of these territories is a member of the International Criminal Court, and the reference here is Palestine.”

The team explained in the memorandum, according to Khazal, that Israel’s withdrawal from its membership in the International Criminal Court, and its indication in the withdrawal decision that it no longer wishes to be a member and therefore there is no longer anything that compels it to implement its obligations towards the court, is something that does not apply to this complaint or the crimes referred to, which occurred in the Gaza Strip from October 7, 2023 until now, as well as the crimes that occurred after this date, as the crimes complained of occurred in the Palestinian territories occupied in 1967, that is, the territories of the Gaza Strip, the West Bank and the rest of the territories that fall within the 1967 borders from the Palestinian side, which is a member of the International Criminal Court.

Khazal continued: “Therefore, Israel’s withdrawal from membership has no impact on this complaint in terms of the spatial circumstance or the involvement of the defendants in the crimes, but rather it falls within the core jurisdiction and mandate of the International Criminal Court.”