Seventy-five senators signed a letter saying they will not support continued US aid to the Palestinian Authority until the US reviews the Palestinian's bid to join the ICC. Photo: Wikimedia Commons.

JNS.org – Seventy-five of 100 US senators signed a letter to Secretary of State John Kerry stating that they will not support foreign aid to the Palestinian Authority until the Obama administration completes a review of the Palestinians’ decision to unilaterally join the International Criminal Court (ICC).

The senators said that the move by Abbas undermines the spirit of previous agreements between Israel and the Palestinians and harms prospects for peace. They also highlighted their concerns regarding Abbas’s efforts to use the ICC as a venue to threaten Israel.

“President Abbas’ effort contravenes the spirit of earlier agreements between Israel and the Palestinian Authority and erodes the prospects for peace,” the senators wrote in a letter spearheaded by Sens. Marco Rubio (R-FL) and Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY). “Therefore, the United States must make clear that joining the ICC is not a legitimate or viable path for the Palestinians.”

“The fact is that the only realistic and sustainable path to resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is through direct negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians. For those negotiations to be successful, Israel needs a Palestinian partner that has renounced violence, refuses to partner with terrorists, accepts Israel’s right to exist as a Jewish state, and is willing to make compromises for peace. … President Abbas’s recent actions undermine these efforts and make a comprehensive peace agreement more difficult to achieve,” the senators added.