Downing Street signals Netanyahu faces arrest if he enters UK after ICC warrant

Number 10 refused to explicitly remark connected “hypotheticals” but said the UK would travel its “legal obligations”.

It comes aft the International Criminal Court issued a warrant for the Israeli premier curate and his erstwhile defence curate Yoav Gallant implicit alleged warfare crimes successful Gaza.

The UK volition ever comply with its ineligible obligations arsenic acceptable retired by home instrumentality and so planetary law

No 10 spokesperson

Asked whether Mr Netanyahu would beryllium detained if helium arrived connected British soil, the Prime Minister’s authoritative spokesperson said helium could not “talk astir circumstantial cases”.

But asked whether the Government would comply with the law, helium said: “The UK volition ever comply with its ineligible obligations arsenic acceptable retired by home instrumentality and so planetary law.”

Number 10 said that the home process linked to ICC apprehension warrants has ne'er been utilized to day by the UK due to the fact that nary 1 wanted by the planetary tribunal had visited the country.

Asked whether a caput of authorities would comply with requirements nether the International Criminal Court Act 2001, Sir Keir Starmer’s spokesperson said: “Yes, the Government would fulfil its obligations nether the Act and so its ineligible obligations.”

The Act states that the Secretary of State must, connected receipt of a petition for apprehension from the ICC, “transmit the petition and the documents accompanying it to an due judicial officer”.

Number 10 would not specify which Cabinet curate would beryllium liable for doing so, but Home Secretary Yvette Cooper earlier said it was “not a substance for me”.

“The International Criminal Court is of people autarkic and we respect its independency and the relation that it has to play,” she told Sky News.

She said determination were “proper processes that request to beryllium followed and truthful it wouldn’t beryllium due for maine to remark connected those”.

“What I tin accidental is that evidently the UK Government’s presumption remains that we judge the absorption should beryllium connected getting a ceasefire successful Gaza,” Ms Cooper added.

Downing Street backed the ICC connected Thursday aft it issued the apprehension warrants, saying the Government respected the independency of the court.

The ICC besides issued a warrant for Mohammed Deif, caput of Hamas’s equipped wing, implicit the October 7 2023 attacks that triggered Israel’s violative successful Gaza.

A home tribunal process would beryllium required earlier Mr Netanyahu faced apprehension if helium acceptable ft successful the UK.

Shadow overseas caput Dame Priti Patel described the warrants arsenic “concerning and provocative” and called connected the Government to “condemn” them.

Dame Priti criticised the ICC for drafting a “moral equivalence” betwixt Israel’s actions successful Gaza and the Hamas violent atrocity connected October 7 2023.

She said: “The Labour Government indispensable condemn and situation the ICC’s decision.”

Before the wide predetermination successful July, Tory ministers had been considering a ineligible situation to the issuing of apprehension warrants, but the Labour medication dropped that idea, saying it was a substance for the court.

The ICC said determination are “reasonable grounds to believe” that Mr Netanyahu and Mr Gallant were liable for “the warfare transgression of starvation arsenic a method of warfare, and the crimes against humanity of murder, persecution and different inhumane acts”.

The court’s pre-trial enclosure besides recovered “reasonable grounds to judge that Mr Netanyahu and Mr Gallant each carnivore transgression work arsenic civilian superiors for the warfare transgression of intentionally directing an onslaught against the civilian population”.

The interaction of the warrants is apt to beryllium constricted since Israel and its large ally, the US, are not members of the ICC.