ICC chief seeks arrest warrants for Netanyahu, Hamas leaders over war crimes allegations

Speaking to a news agency, ICC chief prosecutor Karim Khan said that the ICC is also targeting Israel's Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and two senior Hamas leaders: Mohammed Diab Ibrahim al-Masri, known as Mohammed Deif, the leader of the Al Qassem Brigades, and Ismail Haniyeh, Hamas' political leader.

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First Published May 20, 2024, 5:47 PM IST | Last Updated May 20, 2024, 5:47 PM IST

In a recent development, the International Criminal Court (ICC) is seeking arrest warrants for Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity related to the October 7 attacks on Israel and the ensuing conflict in Gaza.

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The warrants against the Israeli leaders represent a significant move, marking the first time the ICC has sought to prosecute the leader of a key US ally. This places Netanyahu alongside Russian President Vladimir Putin, who is also under an ICC arrest warrant over Russia's actions in Ukraine.

A panel of ICC judges will now review Khan’s request for these arrest warrants.

Khan specified that the charges against Sinwar, Haniyeh, and al-Masri include "extermination, murder, taking of hostages, rape, and sexual assault in detention." He highlighted the global shock following the October 7 events and said, "The world was shocked on the 7th of October when people were ripped from their bedrooms, from their homes, from the different kibbutzim in Israel," and stressed the severe suffering experienced by victims.

Netanyahu and Gallant face charges of "causing extermination, causing starvation as a method of war, including the denial of humanitarian relief supplies, and deliberately targeting civilians in conflict," according to Khan.

In response to earlier reports of possible ICC action, Netanyahu called any potential warrants against Israeli officials "an outrage of historic proportions," asserting that Israel has a robust legal system that independently investigates legal violations.

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Addressing Netanyahu's comments, Khan said, "Nobody is above the law." He advised Israel to contest the ICC's jurisdiction before the court's judges, should they disagree with the charges.

Although Israel and the United States are not ICC members, the ICC claims jurisdiction over Gaza, East Jerusalem, and the West Bank, following the Palestinian leaders’ acceptance of the court’s founding principles in 2015.

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