The International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants Thursday for Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former defense minister Yoav Gallant for purported war crimes committed during the Jewish state’s offensive against Hamas in Gaza.
The pre-trial chamber I of the court voted unanimously to issued the arrest warrants for Netanyahu and Gallant for war crimes the Israeli armed forces allegedly committed against Gazan civilians from October 2023 to May 2024. The ICC also issued an arrest warrant for Hamas commander Mohammad Deif, who was thought to have been killed by an Israeli strike over the summer.
Over 120 countries are members of the ICC and could seek the arrest of Israeli leaders if they travel to those countries. Israel and the U.S. are not members, limiting the implications of the arrest warrants.
Netanyahu fired Gallant earlier this month, announcing that he had lost trust in his defense minister after long-simmering tensions related to how Israel should be handling the war.
The arrest warrants will likely increase tensions between the ICC and American leaders critical of its handling of Israel’s fight against Hamas. President Joe Biden and many other U.S. politicians strongly condemned the court earlier this year when its chief prosecutor announced his intention to seek arrest warrants for Netanyahu, Gallant, and Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar.
“The ICC prosecutor's application for arrest warrants against Israeli leaders is outrageous. And let me be clear: whatever this prosecutor might imply, there is no equivalence — none — between Israel and Hamas. We will always stand with Israel against threats to its security,” Biden said.
Israeli forces killed Sinwar in October during a military operation in Rafah, an area located in the southern part of Gaza, after the Biden administration fought to prevent Israel from launching a military offensive there.
Israel’s fight against Hamas is part of its multi-front war against Iran’s terrorist proxies, as Israel simultaneously battles Hezbollah to its north in Lebanon. The war started when Hamas terrorists slaughtered over 1,200 civilians and captured roughly 250 hostages on October 7, 2023, the worst attack against Jews since the Holocaust.
Incoming Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R., S.D.) earlier this week promised to pursue sanctions against the ICC next year if current Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D., N.Y.) does not bring the matter to a vote by the end of this Congress.
“Now, you have the International Criminal Court, or the ICC, and its prosecutor pursuing warrants against Israeli officials. That is outrageous, and it is unlawful. The ICC rogue actions are a threat to our ally Israel and, left unchecked, could pose a threat to America in the future,” Thune said Tuesday at a press conference.
“If [Schumer] refuses to act, our Senate Republican majority next year will. We will stand with Israel and make this – and other supportive legislation – a top priority in the next Congress.”
President-elect Donald Trump’s cabinet picks for top national-security roles are all unapologetically pro-Israel and supportive of further U.S. military aid for Israel’s war effort.
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