Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US President Joe Biden have strongly condemned the International Criminal Court’s prosecutor for seeking arrest warrants for them alongside Hamas leaders over alleged war crimes in the Gaza conflict. Netanyahu rejected the comparison of “democratic Israel” with “mass murderers” and Biden stated that there is no equivalence between Israel and Hamas. The ICC prosecutor, Karim Khan, believes that Netanyahu and his Defense Minister Yoav Gallant bear criminal responsibility for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza, as well as seeking a warrant for Hamas’s leader in Gaza, Yahya Sinwar, for war crimes.
Israel and the US, not being members of the ICC, have both condemned the actions and accusations made by the prosecutor. The accusations stem from events on October 7, when Hamas gunmen attacked Israel, leading to the current conflict in which over 35,500 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza. Biden firmly stated that Israel is working to protect civilians and rejects any comparison to Hamas. Secretary of State Antony Blinken also condemned the move, calling it “shameful” and suggesting that it may jeopardize ceasefire efforts in the region.
The ICC prosecutor, Khan, has also applied for arrest warrants for Gallant, Hamas’s political leader Ismail Haniyeh, and the group’s military chief Mohammed Deif. The alleged crimes include starvation of civilians as a method of warfare, murder, directing attacks against a civilian population, and extermination. The ICC defended its stance by stating that despite significant efforts, they had not seen any genuine action at the domestic level in Israel to address the crimes alleged.
Netanyahu condemned the application for his arrest as “absurd and false” and accused the prosecutor of distorting reality by comparing Hamas and Israel. He also accused the prosecutor of fueling antisemitism across the world. Israel’s Foreign Minister Israel Katz called the move a “historical disgrace” that will be remembered forever. While some Western allies of Israel did not directly criticize the ICC, they did express support for the court’s fight against impunity. Germany, for example, respected the independence and procedures of the ICC but criticized the simultaneous publication of charges against Israeli and Hamas leaders.
The ICC now awaits a decision from a panel of judges on whether to issue the arrest warrants. If issued, countries signed up to the ICC statute are obligated to arrest the men if given the opportunity. The tensions surrounding these accusations and the potential implications for ongoing ceasefire efforts highlight the complexities of the situation in Gaza and the broader conflict between Israel and Hamas. Despite the condemnation from Netanyahu, Biden, and other officials, the ICC continues to pursue justice for the alleged war crimes committed in the region.
