ICC issues arrest warrant for Israeli PM Netanyahu for ‘war crimes’ in Gaza

Court besides issues warrants for erstwhile Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant and Hamas subject commandant Mohammed Deif.

The International Criminal Court (ICC) has issued apprehension warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, his erstwhile defence curate and a Hamas subject commandant for alleged warfare crimes.

Netanyahu and erstwhile Defence Minister Yoav Gallant were accused of “crimes against humanity and warfare crimes committed from astatine slightest 8 October 2023 until astatine slightest 20 May 2024”, a connection from the tribunal said connected Thursday.

There are “reasonable grounds” to judge that Gallant and Netanyahu “intentionally and knowingly deprived the civilian colonisation successful Gaza of objects indispensable to their survival, including food, water, and medicine and aesculapian supplies, arsenic good arsenic substance and electricity”, it said.

The tribunal besides decided “unanimously” to contented an apprehension warrant for Hamas’s subject commandant Mohammed al-Masri, known arsenic Mohammed Deif, “for alleged crimes against humanity and warfare crimes committed” successful Israel and Palestine from October 7, 2023.

It accused him of crimes including murder, torture, rape and different forms of intersexual violence.

Israel claims to person killed Deif successful an aerial raid successful confederate Gaza successful July. But the tribunal decided to proceed with the warrant, saying it was “not successful a presumption to find whether [he] has been killed oregon remains alive”.

ICC Prosecutor Karim Khan had applied for apprehension warrants against the Israeli officials and 3 Hamas leaders successful May for alleged crimes committed during the Hamas-led October 7, 2023 onslaught connected confederate Israel and Israel’s consequent warfare connected Gaza.

ICC prosecutors said determination were tenable grounds to judge Netanyahu and Gallant – arsenic good arsenic Hamas person Yahya Sinwar, the group’s governmental main Ismail Haniyeh and Deif – carnivore transgression work for alleged warfare crimes and crimes against humanity.

Haniyeh was assassinated successful Iran successful July. Sinwar was killed successful combat with the Israeli subject successful October.

Netanyahu fired Gallant earlier this month, saying helium had mislaid assurance successful him implicit the absorption of Israel’s wars successful Gaza and Lebanon.

Israel is not a subordinate of the ICC and Netanyahu has antecedently called the prosecutor’s accusations against him a “disgrace”, an onslaught connected the Israeli subject and each of Israel.

But the ICC said connected Thursday that it had unanimously decided to cull Israel’s entreaty implicit the court’s jurisdiction.

Reporting from Amman, Jordan, Al Jazeera’s Hamdah Salhut said, “Israel did its champion to discredit the ICC. It tried to situation its jurisdiction … and Israeli politicians internally were doing everything they could to combat [the imaginable ruling].”

Israeli absorption person Yair Lapid condemned the court’s decision, characterising Israel’s warfare connected Gaza arsenic a combat for its beingness “against violent oganisations”.

Former Israeli Defence Minister Avigdor Lieberman posted connected societal media level X that Israel “will not apologise for protecting its citizens and is committed to continuing to combat coercion without compromise”.

Al Jazeera’s elder governmental expert Marwan Bishara praised the court’s determination to contented the long-awaited apprehension warrants, saying “at last, the radical of Gaza, aft a twelvemonth of unfolding genocide, mightiness beryllium capable to spot their perpetrators look justice”.

Gaza’s Ministry of Health said connected Thursday that Israel’s warfare successful Gaza has killed astatine slightest 44,056 Palestinians and wounded 104,286 since October 7, 2023.

An estimated 1,139 radical were killed successful Israel during the Hamas-led attacks that day, and much than 200 were taken captive.