The International Criminal Court on Thursday issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former defense Minister Yoav Gallant, as well as Hamas's military chief Mohammed Deif.
"The Chamber issued warrants of arrest for two individuals, Mr Benjamin Netanyahu and Mr Yoav Gallant, for crimes against humanity and war crimes committed from at least 8 October 2023 until at least 20 May 2024, the day the Prosecution filed the applications for warrants of arrest," the Hague-based ICC said in a statement.
A warrant had also been issued for Deif, it added.
The arrest warrants had been classified as "secret", to protect witnesses and to safeguard the conduct of the investigations, the court said.
"However, the Chamber decided to release the information below since conduct similar to that addressed in the warrant of arrest appears to be ongoing," the tribunal said.
"Moreover, the Chamber considers it to be in the interest of victims and their families that they are made aware of the warrants' existence."
Depriving Gaza’s population
The ICC accuses Netanyahu and Gallant of intentionally depriving the civilian population of Gaza of essential resources such as food, water, fuel and medical aid, in violation of international humanitarian law.
These actions are said to have caused deaths from malnutrition, dehydration and lack of medical care.
Despite Israel's objections to the ICC's jurisdiction, the Pre-Trial Chamber confirmed that the Court could exercise its jurisdiction based on Palestinian territory.
With these warrants, Netanyahu and Gallant risk arrest if they travel to any of the 120 member states of the Rome Statute.
ICC chief prosecutor Karim Khan in May requested the court issue arrest warrants for Netanyahu and Gallant over alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.
Netanyahu sacked Gallant as defense minister on November 5.
Khan also sought warrants against top Hamas leaders including Mohammed Deif on suspicion of war crimes and crimes against humanity.
The prosecutor dropped the application for Haniyeh on August 2 "because of the changed circumstances caused by Mr Haniyeh's death" in Tehran on July 31, the ICC earlier said in a statement.
According to Israel, Deif was killed by a strike on July 13 in southern Gaza, though Hamas denies he is dead.
Hamas on Thursday welcomed the International Criminal Court's issuance, calling it an "important step towards justice".
"(It's) an important step towards justice and can lead to redress for the victims in general, but it remains limited and symbolic if it is not supported by all means by all countries around the world," Hamas political bureau member Bassem Naim said in a statement.
"The ICC's decision represents hope and confidence in international law and its institutions," the Palestinian Authority said in a statement published by official Palestinian news agency Wafa, and urged ICC members to enforce "a policy of severing contact and meetings with internationally wanted individuals, Netanyahu and (Yoav) Gallant".
The European Union's foreign policy chief said International Criminal Court arrest warrants were "binding" and should be implemented.
"It is not a political decision. It is a decision of a court, of a court of justice, of an international court of justice. And the decision of the court has to be respected and implemented," Joseph Borrell said during a visit to the Jordanian capital Amman.
"Prime Minister Netanyahu is now officially a wanted man," said Amnesty International’s Secretary General Agnes Callamard. "ICC member states and the whole international community must stop at nothing until these individuals are brought to trial before the ICC's independent and impartial judges."
Israeli backlash
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused the International Criminal Court of anti-Semitism, calling it "a modern-day Dreyfus trial".
"The anti-Semitic decision of the International Criminal Court is comparable to the modern-day Dreyfus trial and it will end in the same way," Netanyahu said in a statement, referring to the 19th century Alfred Dreyfus affair in which a Jewish army captain was wrongly convicted of treason in France.
Israel's former defense minister Yoav Gallant said that the warrant marked a "dangerous precedent".
"The decision of the court in The Hague will be remembered forever, it places the State of Israel and the murderous leaders of Hamas in the same row and thus legitimizes the murder of babies, the rape of women and the abduction of the elderly from their beds," he wrote on X.
"The decision sets a dangerous precedent against the right to self-defense and ethical warfare and encourages murderous terrorism."
Israel National Security minister and far-right representative Itamar Ben Gvir slammed the ICC’s decision, calling to “impose sovereignty over all areas of the West Bank and strengthen settlements" as a response.
"Issuing arrest warrants against Netanyahu and Gallant is an unparalleled disgrace, but it is not surprising" he said, adding that "the ICC in The Hague proves once again that it is anti-Semitic."
Israeli top diplomat Gideon Saar also criticized the decision, adding that ICC lost legitimacy with 'absurd' arrest warrants.
The United States "fundamentally rejects" a decision by the International Criminal Court to issue arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former defense minister Yoav Gallant, the White House said Thursday.
"We remain deeply concerned by the Prosecutor's rush to seek arrest warrants and the troubling process errors that led to this decision. The United States has been clear that the ICC does not have jurisdiction over this matter," a National Security Council spokesperson said.
With AFP
Comments