ICC issues arrest warrants for Netanyahu, Gallant over Gaza ‘war crimes’

The International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants Thursday for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, accusing them of carrying out war crimes in Gaza — making Netanyahu the first leader of a modern Western democracy to be wanted by the world’s top war crimes court.

The tribunal in The Hague accused Netanyahu and fired-Defense Minister Yoav Gallant of “crimes against humanity and war crimes” through Israel’s military campaign in the Palestinian enclave after Oct. 7.

Netanyahu condemned the ICC’s actions, saying Israel “rejects with disgust the absurd and false actions” of the court.

“There is nothing more just than the war that Israel has been waging in Gaza,” his office said in a statement. 

The ICC, which received an application for the arrest warrants in May from prosecutor Karim Khan, said there was reasonable ground to believe Netanyahu and Gallant engaged in war crimes as the death toll in Gaza surpassed 44,000 on Thursday, per the Hamas-run ministry of health. 

“Each bear criminal responsibility for the following crimes as co-perpetrators for committing the acts jointly with others: the war crime of starvation as a method of warfare; and the crimes against humanity of murder, persecution, and other inhumane acts.”

The court added that there was also “reasonable grounds to believe that Netanyahu and Gallant bear responsibility for the war crime of intentionally directing attacks against the civilian population.”

Israel is not a member of the ICC and does not recognize its jurisdiction in Israel or Gaza, so Netanyahu and Gallant have no fears of being arrested at home.

What to know about the International Criminal Court

What is the International Criminal Court?

The International Criminal Court (ICC) is a global court established in 2002 with the power to prosecute the gravest crimes of concern to the international community, including war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide. It is a court of last resort that intervenes when member states are unwilling or unable to do so themselves. It is governed by an international treaty called the Rome Statute and is based in the Dutch city of The Hague.

Are Israel and the US members?

The ICC has 124 member states and can prosecute crimes committed by nationals of member states or on the territory of member states by others. Israel and the US are not members and do not recognize its jurisdiction. Palestinian territories were admitted as a member state in 2015.

Will Netanyahu be arrested?

All 124 member states of the ICC are obliged by the court’s founding statute to arrest and hand over any individual subject to an ICC arrest warrant if they set foot on their territory. However, the court has no police force and has no means of enforcing an arrest. Sanctions for not arresting someone despite a warrant are also little more than a diplomatic slap on the wrist.

Can Netanyahu still travel?

Yes, an ICC arrest warrant is not a travel ban. However, the prime minister does risk arrest if he travels to a member state. There are also no restrictions on political leaders, lawmakers or diplomats from meeting individuals with an ICC arrest warrant against them.

The decision, however, could isolate the pair from the rest of the world — as the ICC has 124 member states that are obliged by the court’s founding statute to arrest and hand over any individual subject to an ICC arrest warrant if they set foot on their territory. 

Still, the court has no police force and has no means of enforcing an arrest. Sanctions for not arresting someone despite a warrant are also little more than a diplomatic slap on the wrist.

The Netherlands, where The Hague is based, vowed to uphold the warrant and arrest Netanyahu and Gallant if they ever set foot on Dutch soil.  

The US, Israel’s biggest ally which Netanyahu has traveled to regularly, has condemned The Hague’s decision and rejected the arrest warrants. 

The US is not a member of the ICC and the court has never arrested anyone on US soil in the past. 

“The United States fundamentally rejects the Court’s decision to issue arrest warrants for senior Israeli officials. We remain deeply concerned by the Prosecutor’s rush to seek arrest warrants and the troubling process errors that led to this decision,” said a White House National Security Council spokesperson. 

Many European countries — including the UK and France, both of which Netanyahu visited in 2023 — are ICC members. 

Britain respects the independence of the ICC, a spokesperson for Prime Minister Keir Starmer said Thursday, without confirming whether it would uphold the warrants.

The country, however, signaled that it ultimately rejects the suggestion that Israel’s actions in Gaza match those of the Iran-backed terror groups. 

“There is no moral equivalence between Israel, a democracy, and Hamas and Lebanese Hezbollah, which are terrorist organizations,” the UK government said in a statement. 

France’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Christophe Lemoine said the French reaction would be “in line with ICC statutes” but declined to say whether France would arrest the leader if he came to the country. 

“It’s a point that is legally complex,” he said.

Israel’s neighbor, Jordan, is also an ICC member. 

Joran’s Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi said the ruling should be respected, adding that “Palestinians deserve justice.” Netanyahu visited the Arab nation in 2023 on a trip to discuss strategic, security and economic cooperation.

Hungarian Foreign Minister Szijjártó slammed the ICC’s decision as “shameful and absurd,” with Argentinian President Javier Milei adding that it ultimately punishes Israel for defending itself against terrorists. 

Turkey, which has long condemned the war in Gaza, celebrated the decision as a means to the death of Palestinians in the war-torn enclave. 

“The barbaric Israeli authorities, who target our innocent Palestinian brothers and sisters… must be brought to justice as soon as possible for their war crimes and crimes against humanity,” said Yilmaz Tunc, Turkey’s minister of justice.

Along with the Israeli leaders, the ICC put out an arrest warrant for Mohammed Deif, the supreme commander of Hamas’s military wing who helped plan and carry out the Oct. 7 terrorist attack that killed more than 1,200 people and started the war. 

The ICC slammed Deif as a chief architect who facilitated the deaths, rapes and kidnappings of innocent civilians across the Gaza-Israel border. 

Khan had previously sought arrest warrants for former Hamas chiefs Ismail Haniyeh and Yahya Sinwar, but it was withdrawn following their deaths. 

The warrant against Deif remained as Hamas never confirmed his death despite Israel’s claim that he was killed in a July 13 airstrike. 

With Post wires