The Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, Karim Khan, expressed “grave concern” on Wednesday about the images coming from Gaza, where Israel and Hamas are exchanging accusations of committing war crimes and atrocities in the ongoing battles between them for the past four months.
In an interview with the “Agence France-Presse” in Paris regarding the progress of the investigations his office is conducting concerning possible war crimes committed in the conflict between Israel and Hamas, Khan said, “We have an active investigation.”
He added, “We are trying to gather evidence, and we will act when the evidence reaches the appropriate level, which is something that the judges of the International Criminal Court decide.”
Khan continued, “Everyone should be gravely concerned about the images coming from Gaza. Anyone with a heart should be deeply concerned about the rule of law.”
The Prosecutor clarified that the investigations conducted by his office are not limited to the Palestinian territories and Israel but also include other conflict areas around the world “whether it concerns the Rohingya, Gaza, Ukraine, or Sudan.”
Khan reminded that he made many statements and took many steps regarding the current conflict.
He stated, “I was the first Prosecutor to go to Israel and enter Ramallah, and I went to the Rafah crossing.”
The International Criminal Court, established in 2002, is the only independent court in the world created to investigate the most serious crimes, including genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity.
In 2021, the Court opened an investigation regarding Israel, Hamas, and other Palestinian armed factions on suspicion of possible war crimes.
Khan had previously mentioned that this investigation “expanded to include the escalation in hostilities and violence since the attacks that occurred on October 7, 2023.”
However, the teams of the International Criminal Court have not been able to enter Gaza or conduct investigations in Israel, which is not a member of the Court.
Meanwhile, the International Court of Justice in late January called on Israel to prevent any act that might amount to “genocide” in Gaza and also demanded that it allow humanitarian aid access to the sector.
The current war erupted with an unprecedented attack by Hamas on Israel on October 7, resulting in the death of more than 1,160 people, most of them civilians, according to a tally prepared by “Agence France-Presse,” based on official figures.
Also, about 250 hostages were taken in the attack, Israel says that 132 of them are still in Gaza, and at least 29 of them are believed to have been killed, according to figures from the Israeli Prime Minister’s office.
In response to the October 7 attack, Israel launched a bombing campaign followed by a wide ground assault in the sector, resulting in the death of 27,708 people, the majority of whom were women and children, according to the latest tally from the Hamas-affiliated Health Ministry.
