IIsrael notified the International Criminal Court (ICC) on Wednesday of its intention to appeal the arrest warrants targeting Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, Mr. Netanyahu’s office announced.
Pending a decision on the merits, Israel also asked the ICC to suspend the execution of these two arrest warrants, the Israeli Prime Minister’s office said in a statement.
The Court, which sits in The Hague, issued arrest warrants on November 21 against MM. Netanyahu and Gallant for crimes against humanity and war crimes in Gaza, where Israel is carrying out a military operation in retaliation for the unprecedented attack perpetrated on its soil on October 7, 2023 by the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas.
An arrest warrant for the same reasons was also issued against the head of the armed wing of Hamas, Mohammed Deif, whom the Israeli army announced to have killed, which was never confirmed by the movement .
The arrest warrant targeting Mr. Netanyahu raised, particularly in France, the question of his immunity.
An article in the 1998 Rome Statute establishing the ICC addresses the issue of immunity for leaders of countries that do not recognize the court, although it may remain open to various interpretations.
“The State of Israel contests the jurisdiction of the ICC and the legitimacy of the arrest warrants issued against the Prime Minister and the former Minister of Defense,” also specifies the press release from Mr. Netanyahu’s office.
The Israeli Prime Minister met on Wednesday in Jerusalem with American Senator Lindsay Graham who informed him, according to the press release, “of the steps he is taking in the American Congress against the International Criminal Court and against countries that cooperate with it.”
If the Court rejects the appeal, “it will further demonstrate to Israel’s friends in the United States and around the world how biased the International Criminal Court is against the State of Israel.” he concludes.
The war in Gaza was triggered by the Hamas attack, which resulted in the deaths of 1,207 people on the Israeli side, mostly civilians, according to an AFP count based on official data, including hostages killed or died in captivity.
The Israeli offensive carried out in retaliation in Gaza left at least 44,282 dead, the majority civilians, according to data from the Hamas Ministry of Health, deemed reliable by the UN.
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