The former Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, Luis Moreno-Ocampo, held Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu responsible for the massacre that Rafah witnessed the night before last, in a camp for displaced people in Rafah, south of the Gaza Strip.
The former legal official based his accusation against Netanyahu on the latter’s self-admission and describing what happened as “a massacre committed by mistake.” Addressing Netanyahu, Ocampo said, “This is not a mistake. Rather, you are the one who ordered the continuation of the operation in Rafah.” This is sufficient to prove the element of “intention” to commit crimes against humanity. According to his opinion.
Ocampo stressed that the Israeli massacre is a clear violation of the decision of the International Court of Justice to stop military operations in Rafah.
It can also be used as evidence against Israel in other courts such as the International Criminal Court – according to his opinion – to prove that the Israeli army continued to target civilians despite the warning of the Court of Justice, taking into account that the court said that there is no safe place in Gaza that the displaced can go to.
Deliberate intention
Regarding the possible arrest warrants issued by the International Criminal Court against Israeli leaders, Ocampo said that this process could prove Netanyahu’s premeditated criminal intent, and it could be used by judges at the Criminal Court within this context.
Ocampo also considered the scenes filmed by an Israeli march documenting the blowing up of entire residential blocks as evidence that Israel is not targeting an armed enemy but civilians, which falls under the category of war crimes, and for this reason the Criminal Court is demanding the arrest of Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Galant.
Regarding the expected mechanism of work for the two courts, Ocampo said that the International Criminal Court will follow up on the matter and the judges may decide to issue arrest warrants against Israeli leaders, but in parallel, the UN Security Council can impose on Israel to adhere to the order of the Court of Justice judges to stop operations in Rafah, but he raised a question: Will Will America stand with Netanyahu with the right to veto, or will it stand with the law?
It is noteworthy that the Israeli occupation forces committed a new massacre in a camp for displaced people in Rafah, south of the Gaza Strip, causing the death of at least 45 people, most of them women and children, and wounding dozens of others.