Palestine to join International Criminal Court on April first

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon says Palestine will join the International Criminal Court (ICC) on April 1, a move that will enable the Palestinians to pursue war-crimes charges against Israel.

The Palestinians submitted the documents ratifying the Rome Statute that established the court last Friday, a formal step to becoming a member of the world's permanent war crimes tribunal.

In a statement, the Secretary-General said the statute will enter into force for the State of Palestine on April 1 this year.

The Palestinian move has drawn threats of retaliation from Israel, and is strongly opposed by the US as an obstacle to reaching an Israeli-Palestinian peace deal.

ALJAZEERA