The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates has urged the International Criminal Court (ICC) to expedite its investigation of the Israeli war crimes and to finally hold Israeli war criminals to account.

In a statement commenting on Israel’s assassination of five Palestinian citizens last week in Jerusalem and Jenin, the Ministry said: “This massacre is a new episode in the continuous series of Israeli crimes and field executions against our people, which amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity. This is an integral part of the crime of ethnic cleansing practiced by successive Israeli governments.”

It described the latest killings as “a translation of the positions and statements made publicly by Israeli officials to spread the culture of hatred, racism, occupation, hostility to our Palestinian people and denial of their just and legitimate national rights.”

“The continuing Israeli crimes prove once again the credibility of the important speech delivered by President Mahmoud Abbas before the UN General Assembly, especially with regard to the demand for the international community to assume its legal and moral responsibilities towards the suffering of our people living under occupation,” the statement added.

The Ministry affirmed that the Israeli government and all of its organs bear full responsibility for any consequences that may result from the latest crime.