US condemns ICC over war crimes probe of Israel

The US State Department on Friday condemned the International Criminal Court's decision to open a preliminary probe into possible war crimes in Palestinian territories. "We strongly disagree with the ICC Prosecutor’s action today. As we have said repeatedly, we do not believe that Palestine is a state and therefore we do not believe that it is eligible to join the ICC," State Department spokesman Jeff Rathke said in a statement.

" It is a tragic irony that Israel, which has withstood thousands of terrorist rockets fired at its civilians and its neighborhoods, is now being scrutinized by the ICC," he further said.