The News
The International Criminal Court on Thursday issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, and Hamas military chief Mohammed Deif over alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity.
The Israeli military claimed to have killed Deif during an air strike in Gaza in July but the ICC said it could not confirm reports of the commander’s death.
The court unanimously rejected attempts by Israel to appeal its jurisdiction, saying that there were ”reasonable grounds″ to believe the Israeli politicians were co-perpetrators of the war crime of starvation as a method of warfare, and the crimes against humanity of murder, persecution, and “other inhumane” acts.
It also found reasonable grounds to allege that Deif was responsible for various crimes against humanity and war crimes, including torture, extermination, and sexual violence.
Netanyahu’s office condemned the court’s ruling as “antisemitic,” while Hamas said the arrest warrants for Netanyahu and Gallant set an “important historical precedent.”
ICC prosecutor Karim Khan first sought arrest warrants in May against Netanyahu, Gallant, and Hamas leaders Yahya Sinwar and Deif. Sinwar was killed last month.
The View From Israel
Israel is not a party to the Rome Statute and has long accused the International Criminal Court of antisemitism. In a statement, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said that “Israel utterly rejects” the charges against the prime minister and former defense minister, adding that its war against Hamas in Gaza was “just,” and Israel would continue fighting until its objectives were achieved.
The View From The Middle East
Hamas called on the court to expand the scope of accountability “to all criminal occupation leaders,” while not acknowledging the warrant against one of its leaders, Mohammed Deif. A senior Hamas official called on other countries to respect the warrants; signatories of the Rome Statute are technically obliged to act on arrest warrants from the court and send wanted individuals to the Hague for trial.
Jordan’s foreign minister said the ICC’s rulings should be respected and implemented, adding that “Palestinians deserve justice.”
The View From The US
The US is not a party to the Rome Statute, so it is not under any obligation to comply with the arrest warrants, particularly those targeting its long-standing ally, Israel. In a statement Thursday, the White House said the US “fundamentally rejects” the court’s decision.
“We remain deeply concerned by the Prosecutor’s rush to seek arrest warrants and the troubling process errors that led to this decision. The United States has been clear that the ICC does not have jurisdiction over this matter,” a National Security Council spokesperson said. Meanwhile, a top foreign policy adviser to President-elect Donald Trump suggested the US should impose sanctions on the ICC officials involved.
The View from Europe
European Union
The European Union’s foreign policy chief Josep Borrel said the court’s “binding” decision should be respected and implemented, a view that was echoed by some member states, but not all.
France
France declined to confirm whether it would arrest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu if he entered the country, saying it was “legally complex,” but said it would act “in line with ICC statutes.”
Germany
Germany, Israel’s biggest ally within in the European Union, has not yet commented on the decision, but a spokesperson for Chancellor Olaf Scholz said in May that the country would detain both Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former defense chief Yoav Gallant if arrest warrants were issued.
Ireland
Ireland — which said it would join South Africa’s case against Israel at the International Court of Justice in early November — reaffirmed its “strong” support of the ICC and called on all countries “to respect its independence and impartiality” in a statement issued by the foreign ministry. Support for Palestinians is particularly strong in Ireland, with parallels often drawn between the Israel-Palestine conflict and the Irish experience of colonial rule under the British.
The UK
A UK government spokesperson told Semafor that the UK “respects the independence” of the ICC, and is firm in its stance that Israel has a right to defend itself and that there is “no moral equivalence” between Israel and Hamas. A 2001 law states that the UK would comply with the court, but whether or not the UK would endorse the ICC’s warrants would depend on a separate domestic legal process. In July, Prime Minister Keir Starmer had dropped his predecessor’s plan to challenge the ICC’s application for an arrest warrant, with a spokesperson saying at the time that it was “a matter for the court to decide.”