"Attorney-General Avichai Mandelblit promised Thursday night a strong defense of IDF soldiers and other citizens should the International Criminal Court seek to try them for alleged war crimes.
Speaking at a conference at Bar-Ilan honoring retired district court judge Menachem Finklestein upon the publication of his new book on laws of war, Mandelblit threw down the gauntlet before Karim Khan, who was sworn in a day earlier as the new ICC chief prosecutor.
Khan has not yet commented on the dispute between Israel and the Palestinians, but outgoing prosecutor Fatou Bensouda opened up a full criminal probe against the IDF and the settlement enterprise in March.
The attorney-general, who formerly served as the IDF’s top lawyer, said Israel is closely following international legal developments and that it will 'ensure comprehensive representation and assistance… against any legal threat to the state’s citizens and soldiers.'
'The ICC lacks jurisdiction. This position was supported by key nation-states and top legal experts,' he stated.
In addition, he said that, 'The State of Israel is a strong democracy with an independent and professional legal system which is loyal to the values of international law. At its head is the Supreme Court which has received praise and admiration from many countries across the globe.'
'Israel has effective mechanisms to review allegations of violations of international law and knows how to independently probe such claimed violations. Also, due to this, there is no basis for intervention [by the ICC] regarding issues which reside within the jurisdiction and sovereignty of the State of Israel,' added Mandelblit..."