Israel’s Prime Minister Netanyahu Responds to Potential War Crimes Arrest Warrants from International Criminal Court

Israel’s Prime Minister Netanyahu Responds to Potential War Crimes Arrest Warrants from International Criminal Court (VIDEO)

Jim Hᴏft

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu responded strongly to reports that the International Criminal Court (ICC) may soon issue arrest warrants for him and other senior officials.

The ICC, based in The Hague, is said to be nearing the decision to issue warrants for Netanyahu and other high-ranking figures in the Israeli government. The allegations are tied to events that took place during the Israeli-Hamas conflict.

Despite Israel’s non-membership and non-recognition of the court, the Palestinian territories were admitted as a member state in 2015, allowing the court potential jurisdiction over alleged war crimes committed by both Hamas and Israeli forces in Gaza.

ICC Chief Prosecutor Karim Khan previously stated that the court has the “authority” to investigate any such crimes, with the intention to hold accountable those found to be in violation of international law.

In a fiery statement, Prime Minister Netanyahu condemned the ICC’s potential move, framing it as a gross misjudgment and a threat to Israel’s national security.

“The International Criminal Court in The Hague is contemplating issuing arrest warrants against senior Israeli government and military officials as war criminals,” said Netanyahu in a video released Tuesday.

“This would be an outrage of historic proportions. International bodies like the ICC arose in the wake of the Holocaust committed against the Jewish people. They were set up to prevent such horrors, to prevent future genocides. Yet now, the international court is trying to put Israel in the dark.”

“It’s trying to put us in the dark as we defend ourselves against genocidal terrorists and regimes Iran, of course, that openly works to destroy the one and only Jewish state.”

Highlighting the ethical conduct of the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF), Netanyahu praised their efforts to minimize civilian casualties, a task complicated by Hamas’s alleged use of human shields.

“Branding Israel’s leaders and soldiers as war criminals will pour jet fuel on the fires of anti-Semitism, those fires that are already raging on the campuses of America and across capitals around the world. It will also be the first time that a democratic country, fighting for its life according to the rules of war, is itself accused of war crimes.

More...