The International Criminal Court (ICC) issued an arrest warrant for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday.
The ICC had been pushing for Netanyahu’s arrest since May, arguing that he had violated international law and committed crimes against humanity while overseeing Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza since October 2023. A pre-trial chamber in the ICC issued warrants for Netanyahu on Wednesday, putting him at risk of arrest if he travels to the 124 countries that abide by ICC jurisdiction, including Western allies, according to multiple reports.
The international court also issued a warrant for former Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant on similar charges. The court argued that men bear responsibility for “the war crime of starvation as a method of warfare; and the crimes against humanity of murder, persecution, and other inhumane acts,” the ICC stated in its decision, further arguing that they had “intentionally and knowingly deprived” Palestinians in Gaza of critical resources, such as food and medical supplies.
Israeli President Isaac Herzog called the ICC’s “bad faith” decision “a dark day for justice.”
The U.S. is not one of the 124 nations that abide by the Rome Statute, and it is unlikely Netanyahu or Gallant would be arrested if they traveled on American soil. The same is likely true of other Western nations; outside of issuing a warrant, the ICC has no ability to enforce its rulings besides relying on other nations to abide by its decisions.
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