The foreign ministers of the Group of Seven major industrial countries announced on Tuesday that their countries would fulfill their respective obligations regarding the arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, while Italy said that the procedures for implementing the warrant were unclear.
The group’s foreign ministers said – in a joint statement following talks held near Rome – “We reaffirm our commitment to international humanitarian law, and we will fulfill our own obligations.”
The ministers referred to what they called “Israel’s right to defend itself,” and that it must fully comply with its obligations under international law in all circumstances, including international humanitarian law.
The ministers added, “We stress that there cannot be parity between the terrorist movement Hamas and the State of Israel,” according to their statement.
The Group of Seven countries includes Britain, Canada, Germany, France, Japan, the United States and Italy (the host country), so the countries from the ICC member group must arrest Netanyahu if he travels to their territories.
For its part, Italy said – today, Tuesday – that it is ready to respect its obligations regarding the arrest warrants issued by the International Criminal Court against two Israeli officials, but “there is a need for clarification on how it will work” with regard to Netanyahu.
Foreign Minister Antonio Tayani said in a press conference, “We always implement commitments, but we have to understand what these commitments are,” noting that it is not clear “if what Senior state officials had immunity from prosecution.”
Last week, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants against Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Galant. This angered Israel and its allies, including the United States, which is not a member of the court.
The court orders to arrest Netanyahu and Gallant on charges of crimes against humanity and war crimes came more than a year after the Israeli war on the Gaza Strip, which left… Tens of thousands of Palestinian martyrs and wounded, amid a humanitarian situation described as catastrophic and a worsening famine.
