BICOM

In an Israeli television interview last night, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that he still advocates a two-state solution but that the Palestinian leadership’s actions have made the prospect irrelevant.

Speaking to Channel Two, Netanyahu insisted that: “My support for a Palestinian state didn’t expire, the Palestinians just emptied it of meaning.” Peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians, spearheaded by US Secretary of State John Kerry were frozen in April after the Fatah faction of Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas announced a national unity government with terrorist group Hamas. Netanyahu further explained that, “Instead of negotiating they [the PA] are going to the International [Criminal] Court (ICC) in The Hague, charging IDF soldiers with war crimes.”

Last week, Abbas signed the Rome Statute, paving the way for the Palestinians to join the ICC and potential legal action against Israeli leaders and officials. The unilateral move was condemned by both Israel and the United States, as it is likely to create barriers to a future negotiated agreement.

Nonetheless, United Nations (UN) Secretary General Ban Ki-moon confirmed that the Palestinian application to the ICC would be accepted, coming into effect in April. A statement on the UN website quoted Ban, in his capacity as “depositary” for the ratification documents saying “the [Rome] statute will enter into force for the State of Palestine on April 1, 2015.”

In response to the Palestinian ICC application, Israel earlier this week froze around £83 million in Palestinian tax revenues which it collects on behalf of the PA leadership. Yesterday, European Union (EU) foreign affairs head Federica Mogherini said, “Both sides should refrain from taking actions which could raise obstacles to the rapid return to the negotiations.” However, she levelled specific criticism at Israel’s tax revenue freeze, saying it “runs counter to Israel’s obligations” under the Oslo Accords to uphold an effective PA. The ICC application though, as a unilateral act of statehood itself, appears to be a serious violation of the fundamental commitment to a negotiated solution under the Oslo Accords.