Israeli officials are said to be preparing a case against their Palestinian counterparts over allegations of war crimes - in an apparent bid to pre-emptively fend off any international case launched by the Palestinians against Israel.
The move comes days after Palestinian leaders submitted an application to join the International Criminal Court (ICC), the first step in potentially being able to bring Israeli military figures to trial over their actions in Gaza and elsewhere.
Legal proceedings have been filed at courts in the United States against Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian Authority and other senior officials, a source close to the Israeli government told the AFP news agency.
The basis of the complaint is understood to be that Abbas' partnership in a Palestinian consensus government with Hamas makes him complicit in the militant group's attacks against Israel.
"In recent days, officials in Israel stressed that those who should be wary of legal proceedings are the heads of the PA who co-operate within the unity government with Hamas," the source told AFP.
Conflation with IS
The source described Hamas as "a declared terrorist organisation which, like the Islamic State [group], carries out war crimes".
Israel's government has frequently attempted to liken Hamas, designated as a "terrorist group" by the US - but elected in 2006 polls deemed to be free and fair by international observers - to the Islamic State group, which has taken over swathes of Iraq and Syria and made headlines around the world with their gruesome beheadings of opponents.
The source, who declined to be identified, did not detail precisely where or when such legal proceedings could be launched.
Domestic affairs
Back in Israel, Military Advocate-General Danny Efroni ordered 13 investigations into the actions of Israeli soldiers during the latest 50-day Israeli assault on Gaza - in an attempt to minimise international pressure and halt the prosecution of officers abroad on charges of war crimes, reported Haaretz.
The investigations appear to follow a recommendation in the Turkel Committee report, which investigated the attack on the Turkish flotilla in 2010. The report suggested that pursuing such domestic military investigations would likely ease international pressure.
The Palestinian delegation formally presented a request to the United Nations on Friday to join the ICC, a move firmly opposed by Israel and the United States.
The move is part of a strategy pursued by the Palestinians, who are seeking to internationalise their campaign for statehood and move away from the stalled US-led negotiation process.
The US has branded the move to seek ICC membership "counterproductive" and warned it would only push the sides further apart.
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon is to review the "instruments of accession" and notify state members on the request within 60 days.
The Palestinian national consensus government took office in June following a reconciliation agreement between Hamas and Abbas' Fatah movement, ending seven years of rival administrations in the West Bank and Gaza.
Hamas announced its support for joining the ICC - even though the group itself could be subject to prosecution.
Hamas remains the de facto power in the besieged Gaza Strip and fought a bitter summer war with Israel, which took the lives of 73 Israelis - mostly military personnel - and of nearly 2,200 Palestinians, mostly civilians.
The move comes days after Palestinian leaders submitted an application to join the International Criminal Court (ICC), the first step in potentially being able to bring Israeli military figures to trial over their actions in Gaza and elsewhere.
Legal proceedings have been filed at courts in the United States against Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian Authority and other senior officials, a source close to the Israeli government told the AFP news agency.
The basis of the complaint is understood to be that Abbas' partnership in a Palestinian consensus government with Hamas makes him complicit in the militant group's attacks against Israel.
"In recent days, officials in Israel stressed that those who should be wary of legal proceedings are the heads of the PA who co-operate within the unity government with Hamas," the source told AFP.
Conflation with IS
The source described Hamas as "a declared terrorist organisation which, like the Islamic State [group], carries out war crimes".
| Officials in Israel stressed that those who should be wary of legal proceedings are the heads of the Palestinian Authority. |
Israel's government has frequently attempted to liken Hamas, designated as a "terrorist group" by the US - but elected in 2006 polls deemed to be free and fair by international observers - to the Islamic State group, which has taken over swathes of Iraq and Syria and made headlines around the world with their gruesome beheadings of opponents.
The source, who declined to be identified, did not detail precisely where or when such legal proceedings could be launched.
Domestic affairs
Back in Israel, Military Advocate-General Danny Efroni ordered 13 investigations into the actions of Israeli soldiers during the latest 50-day Israeli assault on Gaza - in an attempt to minimise international pressure and halt the prosecution of officers abroad on charges of war crimes, reported Haaretz.
The investigations appear to follow a recommendation in the Turkel Committee report, which investigated the attack on the Turkish flotilla in 2010. The report suggested that pursuing such domestic military investigations would likely ease international pressure.
The Palestinian delegation formally presented a request to the United Nations on Friday to join the ICC, a move firmly opposed by Israel and the United States.
The move is part of a strategy pursued by the Palestinians, who are seeking to internationalise their campaign for statehood and move away from the stalled US-led negotiation process.
The US has branded the move to seek ICC membership "counterproductive" and warned it would only push the sides further apart.
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon is to review the "instruments of accession" and notify state members on the request within 60 days.
The Palestinian national consensus government took office in June following a reconciliation agreement between Hamas and Abbas' Fatah movement, ending seven years of rival administrations in the West Bank and Gaza.
Hamas announced its support for joining the ICC - even though the group itself could be subject to prosecution.
Hamas remains the de facto power in the besieged Gaza Strip and fought a bitter summer war with Israel, which took the lives of 73 Israelis - mostly military personnel - and of nearly 2,200 Palestinians, mostly civilians.