The IDF was unsurprised by the International Criminal Court at The Hague's recent decision that a Palestinian state exists in Judea and Samaria, the Gaza Strip, and east Jerusalem in which it has jurisdiction to investigate Israel, and has been preparing for such a scenario for a few months.
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The military has even appointed an "ICC czar" to coordinate all aspects of the legal battle – Maj. Gen. Itai Veruv, who in currently in charge of the IDF's Military Colleges and also oversees all operational investigations in the IDF.
Veruv is serving as head of a team that includes an expert in international law, but the army would prefer not to be on the front line of Israel's struggle against the ICC decision.
After the ICC announced its decision, on Friday, the Foreign Ministry and the IDF began evaluating various possibilities for responses. As of Sunday evening, none of the IDF attaches abroad or other representatives of the IDF had been briefed about if and how the decision would affect them or about what their messages should be if they were asked about the matter.
Meanwhile, the Justice Ministry is also making preparation to tackle the ICC's decision to allow its chief prosecutor to open criminal investigations against the IDF.
The Justice Ministry said that the ICC decision pertained to the court's authority and that the ICC prosecutors had a long way to go before they could decide to launch any specific investigation.
"As far as we are concerned, the decision is legally flawed at its basis, and oversteps the court's mandate and is destructive to it. The decision endangers a rare opportunity in the region due to the Abraham Accords and security coordination with the Palestinians, and rather than bringing both sides closer, it polarizes them," Israeli officials said.
The same officials noted that a number of states belonging to the ICC had submitted official opinions in which they stated that the court did not have the authority to intervene in this matter.
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