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On Thursday, November 21, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, and the head of Hamas's armed wing, Mohammed Deif, for war crimes and crimes against humanity.
The prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC), Karim Khan, filed the request last May. This Thursday, November 21, the ICC officially issued arrest warrants against the Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, the former Minister of Defense, Yoav Gallant, and the head of the armed wing of Hamas, Mohammed Deif, for war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Situation in the State of Palestine:#ICC Pre-Trial Chamber I rejects the State of Israel’s challenges to jurisdiction and issues warrants of arrest for Benjamin Netanyahu and Yoav Gallant. Learn more u2935ufe0f https://t.co/opHUjZG8BL
— Int’l Criminal Court (@IntlCrimCourt)
“The Chamber issued arrest warrants for two individuals, Mr. Benjamin Netanyahu and Mr. Yoav Gallant, for crimes against humanity and war crimes committed from at least October 8, 2023 until May 20, 2024, day when the prosecution filed the requests for arrest warrants,” the ICC said in a statement from its headquarters in The Hague.
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Concretely, this decision could theoretically restrict the travel of Benjamin Netanyahu. From now on, the 124 member states of the ICC have the obligation to arrest him if he enters their territory. Once arrested, the suspect is usually transferred to The Hague, Netherlands, to stand trial.
Sword in the water?
But this threat remains largely theoretical. Israel does not recognize the jurisdiction of the ICC and the Court does not have coercive means to enforce its decisions. Mongolia, for example, recently hosted Russian President Vladimir Putin, also under ICC arrest warrant, without carrying out his arrest.
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“Israel will never accept any attempt by the ICC to undermine its inherent right to self-defense,” Benjamin Netanyahu declared in April on X. He added: “The ICC will not affect Israel’s actions. “
Finally, the ICC clarified that the arrest warrants against Benjamin Netanyahu were classified “secret” to protect witnesses and guarantee the proper conduct of investigations. However, she judges that it is in the interest of the victims and their families to know about their existence.
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