Article of the week
Why this article
In this article, the Israeli daily Ha'Aretz reviews the possibilities for Benjamin Netanyahu to escape international justice. Indeed, on November 21, the International Criminal Court (ICC), located in The Hague (Netherlands), issued arrest warrants against the Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, and his former minister of Defense Yoav Gallant.
This news perfectly illustrates theme 3 of the final year program, which focuses on the trials of war criminals and the functioning of international justice established after the Second World War.
If we only had to remember one quote
“Now that the highest court charged with upholding international law has affirmed that Israeli leaders are suspected of war crimes, who can be sure that no national court […] will not consider that all Israelis who participated in these alleged crimes should be investigated?”
Since the Hamas attacks on October 7, 2023 against Israel, the Israeli army has been carrying out a relentless offensive on the territory of Gaza. The human toll is considerable, today reaching more than 43,000 deaths in the Palestinian enclave, according to local authorities. But what the ICC criticizes Netanyahu and Gallant more specifically is having used “starvation as a weapon of war”.
“The Court found that there are reasonable grounds to believe that the two individuals intentionally and knowingly deprived the civilian population of Gaza of essential elements for their survival, including food, water, medicine and medical supplies , as well as fuel and electricity”, can we read on the ICC website.
Concretely, the Israeli Prime Minister can, at any time, be arrested on the territory of one of the signatory states of the Rome Statute (which dates from 1998), namely more than 120 countries, including all members of the European Union. . Furthermore, as pointed out Ha'Aretz, any Israeli soldier involved in the war in Gaza can now fear being arrested in a foreign country.
However, some states, such as India and the United States, still refuse to recognize the jurisdiction of the ICC. Thus, Benjamin Netanyahu is counting a lot on the future Trump administration “to declare total war against the International Criminal Court”, explains the Israeli daily.
The United States could impose sanctions on ICC officials to discourage them from pursuing prosecutions of senior Israeli officials. Washington could also pressure many countries to stop funding the ICC or refuse to implement arrest warrants issued. The ICC would then find itself deprived of its authority.
To go further
In order to better understand what international justice is accusing Israeli leaders of, we suggest the following readings:
And what you shouldn't miss this week either
COP29, which was held from November 11 to 23 in Baku, ended with an agreement that was disappointing for some, or even downright disastrous for others, as this press review explains. A subject at the heart of theme 5 in final year, on the environment.
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