Karim Khan, the Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) has said that he is seeking arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, his Defence Minister, Yoav Gallant and three senior Hamas.
Khan said that his office applied to the world court’s pre-trial chamber for arrest warrants for the military and political leaders on both sides for crimes committed during Hamas’ October 7 attack and the ensuing war in Gaza.
Following Khan’s application for arrest warrants, a panel of pre-trial judges will determine whether the evidence supports their issuing.
He named Yahya Sinwar, the Hamas Chief in the Gaza Strip and Mohammed Deif, the commander of its military wing, considered to be the masterminds of the 7 October assault as well as Ismail Haniyeh, the leader of the group’s political bureau, who is based in Qatar, as wanted for crimes of extermination, murder, hostage taking, rape, sexual assault and torture.
Netanyahu and Gallant are accused of extermination, causing starvation as a method of war, the denial of humanitarian relief supplies and deliberately targeting civilians.
“These acts demand accountability,” Khan’s office said in a statement.
The ICC decided in 2021 that it had a mandate to investigate violence and war crimes committed by Israel and Palestinian factions in events dating back to 2014, although Israel is not a member of the court and does not recognise its authority.
The ICC has jurisdiction over Gaza, occupied East Jerusalem and the West Bank after Palestinian leaders formally agreed to be bound by the court’s founding principles in 2015.
Any ICC warrants could put Israeli officials at risk of arrest in other countries, further deepening the country’s growing international isolation over its conduct in the war in Gaza.
Israel is also facing a South African case in the international court of justice accusing Israel of genocide. Israel denies those charges.
Welcoming the news, Belgian Foreign Minister, Hadja Lahbib stated that crimes committed in Gaza must be prosecuted at the highest level regardless of the perpetrators.
“The request submitted by the Court’s prosecutor, Karim Khan, for arrest warrants against both Hamas and Israeli officials is an important step in the investigation of the situation in Palestine,” she posted on X.
“Belgium will continue to support the essential work of international justice to ensure that those responsible for all crimes are held accountable,” the Minister added.
Israel Slams ICC Prosecutor’s Move
Israeli President, Isaac Herzog called Khan’s announcement “beyond outrageous” and argued that it shows “the extent to which the international judicial system is in danger of collapsing.”
The Israeli President alleged the ICC prosecutor had acted in “bad faith” and his decision violated “all the basic rules of the court according to the principle of complementarity and other legal norms”.
Benny Gantz, a former military chief and member of Israel’s war cabinet with Netanyahu and Gallant, criticised Khan’s announcement, saying Israel fights with “one of the strictest” moral codes and has a robust judiciary capable of investigating itself.”
Also, Foreign Minister Israel Katz stated that the decision by the ICC’s chief prosecutor to seek arrest warrants for Israel’s Prime Minister and Defence Minister is “scandalous.”
Katz alleged that the move was tantamount to assaulting the victims of the October 7 attacks carried out in Israel by Hamas.
Katz said that he had opened a special war room to counteract the ICC prosecutor’s move, adding no force in the world will prevent Israel from bringing back the captives held in Gaza and toppling Hamas.
Meanwhile, Hamas also issued a statement denouncing the ICC prosecutor’s decision to seek arrest warrants against its leaders, accusing Karim Khan of trying to “equate the victim with the executioner.”
The group said that it demanded the cancellation of the request, adding that Khan’s application for arrest warrants against Netanyahu and Gallant had come “seven months too late.”
The group called on the ICC prosecutor to issue arrest warrants “for all the Israeli officials who gave orders and the soldiers who carried out crimes, in accordance with the Rome Statute.”
“The prosecutor is acting in violation of all norms that allow for people under occupation, including Palestinians, to resist their occupier,” Hamas’ statement noted.
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