Abstract

Does the potential investigation into Palestine by the International Criminal Court (ICC) threaten the chances of a lasting ‘peace’ between Israel and Palestine? This article endeavours to answer that question and critically assesses claims that the Court could undermine peace in the Middle East. I first examine the key claims made in the so-called ‘peace versus justice’ debate. I then outline some of the specific arguments made in the context of a possible ICC investigation in Palestine that touch upon concerns over the Court’s impacts on peace processes and negotiations. Following this, I try to assess critically the validity of these claims, arguing that while it would be wrong to conclude that the ICC will invariably have positive impacts on efforts to establish peace, there is no evidence that the Court will undermine whatever ‘peace’ is currently on offer for Palestinians and Israelis. On the contrary, this ‘peace’ may itself be a threat to resolving the conflict peaceably and to long-term stability in the region. Finally, I conclude the article with some reflections on the peace-justice debate and its applicability to the Israel–Palestine situation.

中文翻译：

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没有正义，就没有和平，但是和平提供了？巴勒斯坦，以色列和国际刑事法院

摘要

国际刑事法院（ICC）对巴勒斯坦的潜在调查是否会威胁以色列和巴勒斯坦之间持久“和平”的机会？本文致力于回答这个问题，并严格评估有关法院可能破坏中东和平的主张。我首先研究所谓的“和平与正义”辩论中提出的关键主张。然后，我概述在国际刑事法院在巴勒斯坦进行的可能调查中提出的一些具体论点，这些论点涉及对法院对和平进程和谈判的影响的关切。在此之后，我尝试批判性地评估这些主张的有效性，认为尽管得出结论认为国际刑事法院将始终对建立和平的努力产生积极影响是错误的，没有证据表明法院会破坏目前为巴勒斯坦人和以色列人提供的任何“和平”。相反，这种“和平”本身可能是和平解决冲突和对该地区长期稳定的威胁。最后，我在总结本文时对和平正义辩论及其对以色列-巴勒斯坦局势的适用性进行了一些思考。