BenjaThe International Criminal Court (ICC) has issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, his former defense minister and a Hamas military commander for alleged war crimes.
Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant were charged with “crimes against humanity and war crimes committed between October 8, 2023 and at least May 20, 2024,” a court statement said Thursday.
There are “reasonable grounds” to believe that Gallant and Netanyahu “intentionally and knowingly deprived the civilian population of Gaza of items essential to their survival, including food, water, medicine and medical supplies, as well as only fuel and electricity,” he said. .
Netanyahu’s office said in a statement that “Israel rejects with disgust the absurd and false actions directed against it by the ICC,” adding that Israel will not “bow to pressure” in defense of its citizens.
The court also decided “unanimously” to issue an arrest warrant for Hamas military commander Mohammed al-Masri, known as Mohammed Deif, “for crimes against humanity and crimes of alleged war committed” in Israel and Palestine from October 7, 2023.
He accused him of crimes including murder, torture, rape and other forms of sexual violence.
An estimated 1,139 people were killed in Israel in attacks carried out by Hamas that day, and more than 200 were captured.
Israel claims it killed Deif in an airstrike in southern Gaza in July. But the court decided to follow through on the arrest warrant, finding that it was “not able to determine whether he was killed or whether he is still alive.”
ICC Prosecutor Karim Khan had requested arrest warrants for Israeli officials and three Hamas leaders in May for alleged crimes committed during the October 7, 2023 Hamas attack on southern Hamas. Israel and the Israeli war against Gaza that followed.
ICC prosecutors said there were reasonable grounds to believe that Netanyahu and Gallant – as well as Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, the group’s political leader Ismail Haniyeh and Deif – bore criminal responsibility for war crimes and of alleged crimes against humanity.
Haniyeh was assassinated in Iran in July. Sinwar was killed in combat with the Israeli army in October.
Netanyahu fired Gallant earlier this month, saying he had lost confidence in him handling Israel’s wars in Gaza and Lebanon.
Israel calls ICC decision “anti-Semitic”
Israel is not a member of the ICC and Netanyahu has previously called the prosecutor’s accusations against him a “disgrace,” an attack on the Israeli military and all of Israel.
But the ICC said Thursday it had unanimously decided to reject Israel’s appeal over the court’s jurisdiction.
Reporting from Amman, Jordan, Tel Aviv Tribune’s Hamdah Salhut said: “Israel has done its best to discredit the ICC. He tried to challenge his competence…and Israeli politicians internally were doing everything they could to fight (the potential issue of arrest warrants). »
In a statement, the Israeli prime minister’s office called the decision “anti-Semitic” and compared it to a “modern-day Dreyfus trial,” a reference to an incident in France at the turn of the 20th century in which a French soldier from A person of Jewish origin was unjustly convicted of treason.
“Israel vehemently rejects the absurd and false actions and accusations brought against it by the International Criminal Court, a biased and discriminatory political body,” the statement said.
Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid also condemned the court’s decision, while former Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman wrote in a post on X that Israel “will not apologize for protecting its citizens and s “commits to continue to fight against terrorism without compromise.”
Gazans ‘skeptical’ of ICC decision
Hamas hailed the ICC’s issuance of arrest warrants against Netanyahu and his former defense minister as an “important step toward justice.”
“(It is) an important step towards justice and can lead to reparation for victims in general, but it remains limited and symbolic if it is not supported in every way by all countries in the world,” he said. said Basem Naim, a member of the Hamas political bureau. in a statement.
Tel Aviv Tribune senior political analyst Marwan Bishara welcomed the court’s decision, saying that “finally, the people of Gaza, after a year of ongoing genocide, may be able to see its perpetrators brought to justice “.
Reporting from Deir el-Balah in central Gaza, Tel Aviv Tribune’s Hani Mahmoud said residents remained skeptical.
“This is taken with a bit of skepticism…again, we know the United States’ unwavering support (for Israel),” he said.
“So people are very suspicious of the outcome of this arrest warrant and say it could be challenged by the U.S. administration, whether it’s the (current) administration or the (new administration) , who also pledged his support to Israeli officials. »
At least 44,056 people have been killed and 104,286 injured in the Israeli war on Gaza since October 7, 2023, according to Palestinian health authorities.
And then?
Neve Gordan, professor of human rights law at Queen Mary University of London, told Tel Aviv Tribune that the decision to issue arrest warrants could impact arms transfers to Israel.
“If Israel’s leaders are accused of crimes against humanity by the ICC,” he said, “this means that the weapons that European countries send to Israel are being used to commit crimes against humanity. and that they need to reevaluate all their arms trade with Israel starting today and, I would say, stop sending these weapons. »