the chief Prosecutor at the criminal court in the Hague see a "reasonable basis" to investigate possible war crimes.

the chief Prosecutor of The International Criminal court (ICC) in the Hague will open an investigation into possible war crimes in the palestinian territories, she says.

In a communication said the chief prosecutor, Fatou Bensouda, that she is convinced that there has been committed or is being committed - war crimes in the west bank and in east Jerusalem and the Gaza strip.

She believes that there is a "reasonable basis to proceed with an investigation".

Bensouda has since 2015 to investigate possible war crimes committed by both israelis and palestinians.

First it must however be clarified, whether the court has jurisdiction over the area. The palestinian authority is a member of the ICC, but Israel is not.

Last year brought the palestinian autonomy the number of cases before the court of justice on settlements in the west bank, the killing of protesters at the border between the Gaza strip and Israel, and on palestinian detainees in Israel's prisons.

Hanan Ashrawi, a prominent palestinian politician, has the ICC's message welcome. He adds that Israel must pay for its crimes.

prime minister of Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu, refers to it as "a black day for truth and justice".

He points out that the ICC can only hear cases submitted by sovereign nations, and that there never has been a palestinian nation.

It is not clear when there will be a decision by the ICC judges on whether the court has the jurisdiction to investigate these cases.

But the prosecutor says that she has asked the judges to take a position as soon as possible, writes the news agency Reuters.

/ritzau/dpa