# Territorial Jurisdiction **Entity class:** Jurisdictional principle **Domain:** Criminal law / international law / sovereignty **Doc Type:** Concept Node **Maturity:** Developed ## Definition **Territorial jurisdiction** is authority claimed over conduct because it occurred within a territory governed by the relevant legal system. Under Article 12(2)(a) of the [[wiki/Rome Statute|Rome Statute]], the [[wiki/International Criminal Court|International Criminal Court]] may exercise jurisdiction when alleged crimes occurred on the territory of a state party, including when the accused is a national of a non-party. ## Palestine Application In its February 5, 2021 majority decision, the ICC's Pre-Trial Chamber treated [[wiki/State of Palestine|Palestine]] as a state party for purposes of the Rome Statute and held that the Court's territorial jurisdiction in that situation extends to Gaza and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem. The Chamber also said it was not resolving Palestine's statehood for the international community or settling future borders. ## Article Dispute [[blog/20261009 - You Play Your Games - We Play Ours|You Play Your Games - We Play Ours]] does not argue that territorial jurisdiction is inherently exotic. Its objection is that a contested statehood classification is made load-bearing for jurisdiction over officials of a non-party state. The resulting dispute therefore concerns the territorial predicate and its legitimacy, not merely the existence of territorial jurisdiction as a legal principle. ## Evidence Boundary The ICC majority's ruling establishes the Court's own treaty-law basis for the Palestine situation. It does not by itself settle Palestine's general status under international law, the political legitimacy of applying the ruling to Israeli officials, or whether another state will execute a resulting warrant. ## Relationships - [[wiki/Jurisdiction|Jurisdiction]] - [[wiki/Treaty-Delegated Jurisdiction|Treaty-Delegated Jurisdiction]] - [[wiki/Sovereignty by Adjudication|Sovereignty by Adjudication]] - [[wiki/Practical Sovereignty|Practical Sovereignty]] ## Sources / Provenance - [ICC — February 5, 2021 decision on territorial jurisdiction in the Situation in Palestine](https://www.icc-cpi.int/news/icc-pre-trial-chamber-i-issues-its-decision-prosecutors-request-related-territorial). - [Rome Statute PDF](https://www.icc-cpi.int/sites/default/files/2024-05/Rome-Statute-eng.pdf), Article 12.