Ref:
06/2015

On
Monday, 02 March 2015, Raji Sourani, Chairman of the Arab Organization for
Human Rights and Director of the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR),
met with Dr. Nabil al-‘Arabi, Secretary-General of the League of Arab States,
and his assistant for Palestinian affairs, Ambassador Mohammed Subeih, in the
presence of Talal al-Amin, Director of the Arab Affairs Department, and Ilham
al-Shajni, Director of Human Rights Department in the League.

The
meeting addressed the latest developments, including the accession of
Palestinian President, Mahmoud ‘Abbas, to the Rome Statute of International
Criminal Court (ICC) and preparations by the four Palestinian organizations
working on this issue in addition to the action strategy that will be followed
in this field.  During the meeting,
Sourani called upon the Secretary-General, based on his legal background as an
international lawer and a former judge in the International Court of Justice
(ICJ) and his political capacity as the Secretary-General of the League of Arab
States, to offer the political and moral support for the Palestinian team
representing the victims.

Sourani
stressed that resorting to the ICC constitute a victory for the rule of law over
against the law of jungle adopted by the Israeli occupation.  This came after the Israeli judiciary closed all
doors before the Palestinian victims following the latest amendment of the
Israeli law, and especially after Western Europe states, such as the UK and
Spain, granted more impunity to israeli war criminals by amending their
laws.  Dr. al-‘Arabi promised that the
League will support this effort in implementation of previous decisions taken
in this regard.  Moreover, he stated that
he received an invitation from Fatou Bensouda, ICC Prosecutor, to meet with her
in the Hague.

Moreover,
Sourni addressed the inhumane and illegal closure, which constitutes a form of
collective punishment against 2 million Palestinian civilians. He stressed that
the closure is a war crime committed by Israeli forces intentionally and consciously.
Sourani also pointed out that the Israeli-imposed closure is the vastest
humanitarian disaster caused by the Israeli occupation and would be one of the
4 main files to be addressed by Palestinian organizations before the ICC in
addition to issues of settlements, the annexation wall and the latest Israeli
offensive on the Gaza Strip.

Sourani
demanded Dr. al-Arabi to exert all efforts needed to accomplish the Palestinian
reconciliation in order to put an end to the division that constitutes a
political suicide par excellence, and to eliminate all the regional and
international obstacles that obstruct achieving the reconciliation.

Sourani
concluded the meeting by thanking Dr. al-Arabi for his solid and systematic
positions in support for the Palestinian people and cause. He emphasized that
the application of law and the rule of law do not contradict with peace and
security, as both peace and security prevail by respect for the rule of law and
human dignity.