International Criminal Court issues arrest warrant against Netanyahu
Judges say they have grounds to believe Netanyahu and Gallant were responsible for starvation in Gaza and persecution of Palestinians; Al-Masri accused of mass killings
The International Criminal Court (ICC) has reportedly issued arrest warrants against Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, its former defence minister Yoav Gallant, and Hamas leader Mohammed Diab Ibrahim Al-Masri for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity.
According to news agency Reuters, the ICC judges said they had reasonable grounds to believe that Netanyahu and Gallant were criminally responsible for starvation in Gaza and the persecution of Palestinians.
The warrant for Al-Masri lists charges of mass killings during the October 7, 2023, attacks on Israel that triggered the Gaza war, including rape and the taking of hostages.
Also read: Pager, walkie-talkie attacks on Hezbollah: Israeli PM Netanyahu admits to Israel's role
Israel denies war crimes
“…there are reasonable grounds to believe that both individuals [Netanyahu and Gallant] intentionally and knowingly deprived the civilian population in Gaza of objects indispensable to their survival, including food, water, and medicine and medical supplies, as well as fuel and electricity,” the ICC’s three-judge panel reportedly wrote in its unanimous decision to issue the warrants.
Israel has rejected the jurisdiction of the Hague-based ICC and has denied the war crimes in Gaza. Israel has also claimed to have killed Al-Masri, or Mohammed Deif, in an airstrike, but Hamas has neither confirmed nor denied it.
Also watch: Hiding in a bunker? Netanyahu’s location under scanner after Hezbollah attack
ICC has no police force
The ICC, which does not have its own police force and relies on its member states to carry out arrests, said Israel’s acceptance of its jurisdiction was not required. Its members include all European Union countries, Britain, Japan, Brazil, Australia, and Canada, and Palestine and Jordan in the Middle East (West Asia).
The conflict has so far claimed at least 44,056 lives in Gaza, according to the Hamas’s health ministry, while 104,268 people have been wounded.
(With agency inputs)
