Adalah – The Legal Center for Arab Minority Rights in Israel welcomed the opening of the International Criminal Court (ICC) investigation announced by ICC Chief Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda – the highest legal authority in international criminal law – into the "situation in Palestine."

"The decision confirms what Adalah has maintained for years: there is serious and grave suspicion that Israel is committing war crimes against the Palestinian people," it said in a statement.

"In addition to the continued construction of settlements in the occupied West Bank, the Israeli military acts in violation of the norms of international law and systematically violates the laws of war – especially when it indiscriminately harms civilians," it underlined.

"Israel's continued shielding of those responsible for these crimes, and its refusal to conduct genuine, effective, and independent investigations into the cases Adalah has brought before the Israeli legal system, have culminated in this pivotal moment."