International Criminal Court Prosecutor Confirms Attacks on Civil Infrastructure Will Be Asked for Explanation

International Criminal Court (ICC). (Wikimedia Commons/Vysotsky)

JAKARTA - International Criminal Court (ICC) Prosecutor Karim Khan told CNN on Sunday that anyone who targets civilian infrastructure in the Israel-Gaza conflict must be able to provide an explanation.

"There is no doubt that every decision maker, from heads of government, to military advisors, to lawyers who have decisions regarding targets, must know clearly that they will be asked to explain every attack on any civilian object," stressed Khan, citing CNN, October 30.

"What I can say clearly is that deliberate killings and hostage-taking are major violations of the Geneva Conventions," Khan continued.

"Under no circumstances should human objects be protected, unless you can prove that they have lost their protection," he said.

Khan said civilian targets, such as "homes or schools or hospitals or churches or mosques," should be protected under international law, unless they are military targets.

He said determining whether a target was a military target was "complicated", requiring analysis and information.

"You have to prove it, you can't assume. And the burden of proof is on the person who opened fire, or targeted a residential house, or school or hospital or church or mosque," stressed Khan.

It is known that the ICC is an independent body based in The Hague, Netherlands and is not part of the UN system. This body was established based on the Rome Statute of 1998.

Under Article 5 of the Rome Statute, the ICC has jurisdiction over genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes.

However, the ICC can only exercise jurisdiction over crimes, if the crime was committed on the territory of a member state, or by one of its nationals.

Israel itself is not a party to the Rome Statute. There are some case-by-case exceptions. A country that is not a member of the ICC can make a declaration to accept the jurisdiction of the ICC, while the UN Security Council can refer the situation to the ICC, even if the UN member state is not a party to the law.

As of Sunday, the death toll in Gaza had risen to 7,960 according to the Palestinian Health Ministry in Ramallah, citing data from sources in the Hamas-controlled enclave, since the group launched attacks into southern Israel and killed around 1,400 of its citizens.

The ministry report said 73 percent of those killed were from vulnerable populations, including children, women and the elderly. In addition, the death toll includes 116 medical personnel.