United Nations, January 3 (RHC)-- The Palestinian ambassador to the United Nations has officially submitted Palestine's International Criminal Court membership documents to the world body.

"We are honored that we are to be the 123rd state party to join the ICC, which will become effective about 60 days from now," said Riyad Mansour at the UN headquarters in New York on Friday following the delivery of Palestine's application.

The Palestinian envoy stressed that the ICC membership will pave the way for Palestinian authorities to seek justice for the victims of the Israeli regime's aggression. Mansour also confirmed that the Palestinian ambassador at The Hague had officially asked the ICC to launch an investigation into Israel's war crimes during the regime's offensive on Gaza last summer.

On Wednesday, Mahmoud Abbas, the president of the Palestinian national unity government, signed the documents necessary for Palestine to join 20 international organizations, including the ICC. Abbas' decision is believed to be closely related to the outcome of a UN Security Council meeting on December 30th, when the body failed to pass a resolution requiring Israel to end its occupation of the Palestinian territories captured in 1967.

Israel has launched three wars on Palestinians in the besieged Gaza Strip since 2008. During the latest military aggression against Gaza in summer 2014, Tel Aviv killed over 2,140 Palestinians and destroyed thousands of homes.