A/HRC/43/21 responsibilities of the High Contracting Parties to the Fourth Geneva Convention, in accordance with articles 146, 147 and 148 of the Fourth Geneva Convention. Moreover, it called upon all the parties concerned to cooperate fully with the preliminary examination of the International Criminal Court and with any subsequent investigation that may be opened. 41. Third States may take various measures to comply with their obligations under relevant international law, in particular to ensure respect for international humanitarian law. 73 Such measures may range from diplomatic interventions and démarches to more significant steps, including supporting domestic and international efforts to bring suspected perpetrators of serious violations of international human rights and humanitarian law to justice, applying measures of retortion or adopting lawful countermeasures. 74 42. In October 2019, with a view to contributing to the present report, OHCHR sent a note verbale to Member States requesting them to provide information on any steps they may have taken as third States to promote compliance with international law and implement the recommendations addressed to them in the report of the independent international commission of inquiry on the protests in the Occupied Palestinian Territory. Two responses were received, from Cuba and the Syrian Arab Republic. In their responses, both States reiterated their support for Human Rights Council resolution 40/13 and reaffirmed the need for the international community to take decisive steps to end violations of international law in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, while emphasizing the importance of continuing to document the violations and crimes committed. 43. On 17 September 2019, the District Court of The Hague held an admissibility hearing on a case brought by a dual national of the State of Palestine and the Netherlands, Ismail Ziada, against a former Chief of General Staff of the Israel Defense Forces and a former Commander of the Israeli Air Force, alleging their responsibility as commanders in an airstrike that hit the plaintiff’s family house in Bureij refugee camp in Gaza, on 20 July 2014, during Operation Protective Edge 75 and that resulted in the death of six members of the plaintiff’s family. The case has been submitted in accordance with the law of the Netherlands extending civil jurisdiction for citizens unable to initiate legal proceedings elsewhere. 44. While States Members of the United Nations have often supported the adoption of resolutions and declarations by different United Nations bodies enshrining respect for international law principles in relation to the situation in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, the degree of compliance with the decisions and recommendations of these bodies remains uneven, as underlined in previous reports of the High Commissioner.76 V. Conclusion and recommendations 45. The period under review was characterized by a persistent failure to ensure accountability for allegations of excessive use of force by the Israeli security forces in the context of the large-scale protests in Gaza and law enforcement operations in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem. Impunity also remained pervasive in relation to allegations against all parties to the 2014 escalation and to previous rounds of hostilities in Gaza. Furthermore, there were concerns about the insufficiency of steps taken to investigate and prosecute the members of Palestinian security forces or of the security forces in Gaza responsible for alleged excessive use of force and other human rights abuses committed against Palestinians. 73 74 75 76 International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), commentary of 2016 on article 1 common to the Geneva Conventions, para. 165. See also A/HRC/40/43, para. 49. ICRC, commentary of 2016 on article 1, para. 181. www.reuters.com/article/us-netherlands-israel-gantz/dutch-court-to-hear-case-against-israels-gantzidUSKBN1W12JZ. A/HRC/31/40/Add.1 and A/HRC/35/19, para. 62. Also, as emphasized by the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territories occupied since 1967, the international community possesses a great deal of power to ensure a positive, durable and just solution to the occupation. Indeed, it will not end without the international community acting decisively in support of international law and its common values to compel Israel to fulfil its obligations (A/74/507, para. 76). 13