The Hague (agencies)
Yesterday, the International Criminal Court prosecutor requested the issuance of arrest warrants against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, his Defense Minister, and three Palestinian faction leaders, on suspicion of committing crimes against humanity.
Karim Khan said in a statement that he is seeking arrest warrants against Netanyahu and Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Galant, on charges of committing crimes including “starvation,” “premeditated murder,” and “extermination or murder.”
Referring to Netanyahu and Gallant, the statement added, “We affirm that the crimes against humanity included in the petitions were committed as part of a widespread and systematic attack against Palestinian civilians in accordance with state policy, and these crimes, in our assessment, are still being committed to this day.” Israel denounced Khan’s request, and Netanyahu described the request to issue an arrest warrant against him and his defense minister as a “scandal,” adding, “This will not prevent me or us.”
Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz said: “The Attorney General mentions the Prime Minister and Minister of Defense of the State of Israel, along with the faction leaders. This is a historical stain that will remain in the memory forever.”
Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich threatened the international court, saying on the “X” platform: “Arrest warrants will be the final nail in dismantling this political court,” as he claimed.
Meanwhile, National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir called for ignoring the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court and escalating the war on the Gaza Strip.
For his part, US President Biden said that the International Criminal Prosecutor’s request to issue arrest warrants against Israeli leaders is “outrageous,” adding, “Let me be clear, whatever this prosecutor means, there is absolutely no parity between Israel and the factions.” US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken also denounced the efforts of the International Criminal Court against the Israeli Prime Minister and his Minister of Defense, considering that the international body has no judicial authority over Israel.
In turn, the Palestinian factions strongly denounced the request of the International Criminal Court prosecutor, and said in a statement: “We strongly denounce the attempts to equate the victim with the executioner by issuing arrest warrants against a number of Palestinian resistance leaders,” considering that the prosecutor’s request to issue an arrest warrant against the Israeli Prime Minister and Minister of Defense came 7 months late. In 2021, the International Criminal Court prosecutor opened an investigation against Israel and other armed Palestinian factions for possible war crimes in the Palestinian territories.
Khan said in February: “All wars have rules, and the laws applied to armed conflicts cannot be interpreted in a way that makes them hollow and devoid of meaning.”
He added at the time, “This was my consistent message, including from Ramallah last year, and since then, I have not seen any noticeable change in Israel’s behavior.”
Also, the court announced in January that it was investigating possible crimes against journalists since the outbreak of hostilities in Gaza.
In this context, Khan said: “Today, we affirm once again that international law and the laws of armed conflict apply to everyone. No infantry soldier, commander, or civilian leader, no one, can act with impunity.”
Technically, the arrest warrants, if issued, mean that any of the 124 member states of the International Criminal Court will be obligated to arrest Netanyahu or other people against whom these warrants are issued, if he travels there.
But while the arrest warrant may complicate some of Netanyahu’s travels, the court does not have a mechanism to enforce arrest warrants and instead relies on its members to do so.
Weeks ago, reports spread that the court was about to take action against Netanyahu, which prompted him to issue a prior reaction. He said in a post on the “X” platform: Israel “will never accept” the rulings of the International Criminal Court, adding, “We will not bow to them.” .
In mid-November, five countries called for the International Criminal Court to conduct an investigation into the war in Gaza, and Khan said his team had collected a large amount of evidence regarding “relevant incidents.”
The ICC team was unable to enter Gaza or investigate non-ICC member Israel. However, Khan visited Israel in November at the request of survivors of the October 7 attacks, then went to Ramallah in the occupied West Bank, where he met with Senior Palestinian officials.
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