He added that the Palestine Liberation Organisation's office in Washington was being ordered closed out of concern about Palestinian attempts to prompt an ICC investigation of Israel. "Accordingly, we continue to call upon the International Criminal Court to open its immediate investigation into Israeli crimes." Israel welcomed the Trump administration's move and accused the Palestinians of seeing the court as a way of sidestepping US-sponsored bilateral talks. In addition, the United States may negotiate more binding, bilateral agreements to prohibit nations from surrendering Americans to The Hague-based court, Bolton said. The United States did not ratify the Rome treaty that established the ICC in 2002, with Republican President George W. Bush opposed to the court.

Source: bd News24 September 10, 2018 20:37 UTC