ICC is creating hatred of Jews and Israel Author: NGO Monitor President, Prof. Gerald Steinberg The ruling last week by two judges of the International Criminal Court (ICC) endorsing the prosecutor’s jurisdiction over Israel, which is not a state party to the ICC, and “Palestine”, which is not a state, was hardly a surprise. The cynical strategy of using the ICC and vagaries of international law to wage political war was developed more than 20 years ago, and has powerful backers. If anything, the surprise is that it took so long. Although these developments are distressing, it is very unlikely that Israelis will actually be arrested or stand trial in The Hague. The actual threat is from adding to the demonization of Israel as a country of war criminals, deserving of international isolation. These labels, in turn, reinforce incitement and contribute to violent attacks against Israeli and Jewish targets in the name of justice and international law. Perhaps the recent developments, which open the door to investigations of individual Israelis and labeling them as war criminals, will spur the government to take effective action against NGOs and their funders. In parallel, a strong effort to cut or condition state funding for the ICC on reversing the politically motivated targeting of Israeli, British, and American officials can also make a difference. Both NGOs and the ICC need budgets to function and this is their primary vulnerability. Gerald Steinberg is professor emeritus of Political Science at Bar Ilan University and president of the Institute for NGO Research, in Jerusalem. Source: NGO Monitor ? Flash 90 ?? IF YOU LOVE ISRAEL - SHARE NEWSRAEL! ??