On 21 November 2024, following an investigation of war crimes and crimes against humanity, the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants for two senior Israeli officials, Benjamin Netanyahu, the Prime Minister of Israel, and Yoav Gallant, the former Minister of Defense of Israel, alleging responsibility for the war crime of starvation as a method of warfare and the crimes against humanity of murder, persecution, and other inhumane acts during the Israel–Hamas war. [1] [2] The warrant against Netanyahu is the first against a Western-allied leader for war crimes. [3]
125 ICC member states are now required to arrest Netanyahu and Gallant if they enter their territory, including France and the United Kingdom. [4] The ICC also issued an arrest warrant for Hamas military commander Mohammed Deif, who was reportedly killed in an Israeli airstrike on 13 July 2024. [a] An additional possible effect these arrest warrants have is that additional warrants may be issued against Israeli senior IDF officers fighting in Gaza. [7] [8]
The ICC was established in 2002 to prosecute war crimes, crimes against humanity, genocide, and the crime of aggression when member states are unwilling or unable to do so. It can also prosecute crimes committed by nationals or on territory of any of its 124 member states. It currently is also investigating crimes committed in Ukraine, Uganda, and others. The Palestinian territories were admitted as a member state in 2015, allowing for the investigation even though Israel is not a member and does not recognize its jurisdiction. [9]
All of the 124 member states of the ICC are obliged by their agreements to the courts founding statute to arrest and hand over any individual with an active ICC arrest warrant, if they are identified in their territory. However, the court has no means of enforcing an arrest and has no police force, and can only potentially sanction a non-cooperative member state. [10]
On 20 December 2019, ICC prosecutor Fatou Bensouda announced an investigation into war crimes allegedly committed in Palestine by members of the Israel Defense Forces or Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups since 13 June 2014. [11] [12] Since the investigation was opened in 2015, Israel used its intelligence agencies to surveil, pressure, and threaten senior ICC staff. [13]
On 12 October 2023, ICC chief prosecutor Karim Khan stated that both war crimes committed by Palestinians on Israeli territory and by Israelis on Palestinian territory during the Israel–Hamas war would be within the jurisdiction of the ICC's Palestine investigation. [14] On 29 December 2023, South Africa filed a case against Israel at the International Court of Justice, alleging that Israel's conduct amounted to genocide. [15]
In late April 2024, ICC staff interviewed Palestinian hospital staff from the Gaza Strip about possible war crimes. [16] [17]
On 20 May 2024, Khan announced that he would file applications for arrest warrants against Hamas leaders Yahya Sinwar, Mohammed Deif and Ismail Haniyeh and Israeli leaders Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Minister of Defense Yoav Gallant. [18] [19] [20] The request for a warrant against Haniyeh was withdrawn following his assassination on 31 July 2024, and the request for a warrant against Sinwar was withdrawn following his killing on 16 October 2024. [21] [22] The prosecutor stated that he was trying to confirm the alleged killing of Deif on 13 July 2024, in which case the warrant request would be withdrawn. [23]
On 21 November 2024, the ICC's Preliminary Chamber I's Judges Nicolas Guillou (Presiding, France), Reine Alapini-Gansou (Benin) and Beti Hohler (Slovenia) [24] issued arrest warrants under request from chief prosecutor Khan in regards to "the activities of Israeli government bodies and the armed forces against the civilian population in Palestine, more specifically civilians in Gaza" [25] [26] for Benjamin Netanyahu, Yoav Gallant and Mohammed Deif. [1]
Pre-Trial Chamber I stated that it found reasonable grounds that from "8 October 2023 until at least 20 May 2024" Netanyahu and Gallant bear criminal responsibility "as co-perpetrators for committing the acts jointly with others: the war crime of starvation as a method of warfare; and the crimes against humanity of murder, persecution, and other inhumane acts" and "as civilian superiors for the war crime of intentionally directing an attack against the civilian population." [25] and that Deif bears direct and command responsibility "for the crimes against humanity of murder, extermination, torture, and rape and other form of sexual violence; as well as the war crimes of murder, cruel treatment, torture, taking hostages, outrages upon personal dignity, and rape and other form of sexual violence". It found reasonable grounds that "the crimes against humanity were part of a widespread and systematic attack directed by Hamas and other armed groups against the civilian population of Israel". [22]
One of the key allegations was the "use of starvation as a weapon of war". [27] [28] [29] [30] [31] The use of starvation as weapon of war is banned by the United Nations. [32] Since then it was used in both Gaza and Sudan. [33] In mid 2023 German government officials also accused Russia of using hunger as a weapon. [34] [35] Yoav Gallant made a public speech in early October 2023, shortly after the Hamas attacks on Israel that sparked the war, saying, ‘there will be no more electricity, no more food, no more fuel … We are fighting against human animals and will behave accordingly’. [36] [37] [38] A few weeks before that the arrest warrants were issued, there were also reports of looting occurring in areas controlled by the IDF. [39] [40]
In December 2024 and January 2025, the possibility of Netanyahu visiting Poland, party to the Rome Statute, on 27 January, the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz concentration camp was discussed by Polish politicians. On 5 December 2024, Andrzej Szejna, the Polish deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs stated at a Sejm sitting of the foreign affairs commitee that Poland was obliged to cooperate with the ICC. He stated that heads of countries had no immunity in the ICC context. On 9 January 2025, Polish president Andrzej Duda requested the government led by Donald Tusk to protect Netanyahu from arrest were he to choose to attend the anniversary commemorations. [41] On the same day, the government published a resolution [42] stating that it would "guarantee the free and secure participation to the ceremony to the highest representatives of Israel" (Polish : zapewni wolny i bezpieczny dostęp i udział w tych obchodach najwyższym przedstawicielom Państwa Izrael). OKO.press commented that the government resolution did not name Netanyahu explicitly. [41] Donald Tusk stated his interpretation of the resolution to the media, according to which any Israeli representative who made the visit, whether it were "the prime minister" or another leader, would not be detained. [43]
An ICC spokesperson responded by stating that carrying out ICC decisions is obligatory to states parties towards both the ICC and to other states parties. The spokesperson stated that states with concerns about their obligations could consult with the ICC, but were not permitted to unilaterally determine the validity of the ICC's legal decisions. [44] Legal scholars Karolina Wierczyńska, Piotr Hofmański and Omer Bartov stated that Netanyahu would have to be arrested if he visited Poland. Member of the Sejm Tomasz Trela stated that Netanyahu would have to be "instantly" arrested the moment he crossed the Polish border. [41] Under Polish law, the Rome Statute is an international treaty obligation with legal priority above that of a Cabinet resolution. [45] The procedure for an ICC fugitive is defined in Chapter 66e of the Polish criminal procedure law associated with the Polish Penal Code. According to legal scholar Hanna Kuczyńska, if an ICC fugitive arrived in Poland at the Kraków international airport, then the Minister of Justice would have to request a prosecutor to order that the person be detained by the police and brought to the Kraków district court, which would decide on the fugitive's transfer to The Hague. The district court's decision would be strongly constrained by the Rome Statute. [45]
International law professor Eliav Lieblich of Tel-Aviv University characterised the decision as "the most dramatic legal development in Israel's history", referring to his view that all 124 States Parties to the Rome Statute, including "most of Israel's closest allies", were legally obliged to arrest Netanyahu and Gallant if they are present in their territories. [46] International law professors Matthias Goldmann and Kai Ambos said to Der Tagesspiegel that Germany was legally obliged to enforce the arrest warrants. [47]
US defense lawyer and professor Alan Dershowitz stated that the rule of law had been "disgraced" by the ICC's decision. He condemned the "false charges" and announced his intention to assemble a team of prominent lawyers to defend Israeli leaders in The Hague. [48] Canadian human rights advocate and former justice minister Irwin Cotler criticized ICC Prosecutor Karim Khan for his approach toward Israeli leaders, asserting that Khan violated principles of cooperation and complementarity by issuing arrest warrants for them while being lenient toward Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro. [49]
Prime Minister of Israel @IsraeliPMThe antisemitic decision of the International Criminal Court is a modern Dreyfus trial – and will end the same way.
Israel utterly rejects the false and absurd charges of the International Criminal Court, a biased and discriminatory political body.
21 November 2024 [50]
Following Israeli accusations about the neutrality of Judge Beti Hohler, the ICC responded that Hohler had no prior involvement in investigations related to Palestine while at the Office of the Prosecutor. Hohler added that she had "not accessed any documents, evidence, or secret files related to the matter." [54]
The International Criminal Court (ICC) is an intergovernmental organization and international tribunal seated in The Hague, Netherlands. It is the first and only permanent international court with jurisdiction to prosecute individuals for the international crimes of genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes, and the crime of aggression. The ICC is distinct from the International Court of Justice, an organ of the United Nations that hears disputes between states. Established in 2002 pursuant to the multilateral Rome Statute, the ICC is considered by its proponents to be a major step toward justice, and an innovation in international law and human rights.
Universal jurisdiction is a legal principle that allows states or international organizations to prosecute individuals for serious crimes, such as genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity, regardless of where the crime was committed and irrespective of the accused's nationality or residence. Rooted in the belief that certain offenses are universally morally reprehensible and that they threaten the international community as a whole, universal jurisdiction holds that such acts are beyond the scope of any single nation's laws. Instead, these crimes are considered to violate norms owed to the global community and fundamental principles of international law, making them prosecutable in any court that invokes this principle.
Benjamin "Bibi" Netanyahu is an Israeli politician who is serving as the prime minister of Israel since 2022, having previously held the office from 1996 to 1999 and from 2009 to 2021. Netanyahu is the longest-serving prime minister in Israel's history, having served a total of over 17 years.
Mohammed Diab Ibrahim al-Masri, better known as Mohammed Deif, is a Palestinian militant and the head of the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of the Islamist organization Hamas.
Theodor Meron, is an American lawyer and judge. He served as a judge of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY), International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR), and the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals (Mechanism). He served as President of the ICTY four times and inaugural President of the Mechanism for three terms (2012–19).
The International Criminal Court has opened investigations in Afghanistan, Bangladesh/Myanmar, Burundi, the Central African Republic (twice), Côte d'Ivoire, Darfur in Sudan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Georgia, Kenya, Libya, Mali, Palestine, the Philippines, Uganda, Ukraine, and Venezuela I. The Office of the Prosecutor carried out and closed preliminary investigations in Bolivia; Colombia; Congo II; Gabon; Guinea; Honduras; Iraq/the United Kingdom; registered vessels of Comoros, Greece, and Cambodia; and South Korea. Ongoing preliminary examinations are being carried out in situations in Lithuania/Belarus, Nigeria, and Venezuela II.
The United States is not a state party to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, which founded the International Criminal Court (ICC) in 2002.
Yoav Gallant is an Israeli politician and former military officer who served as minister of defense between 2022 and 2024. Gallant was an officer in the Southern Command of the Israel Defense Forces, serving in the Israeli Navy. In January 2015 he entered politics, joining the new Kulanu party. After being elected to the Knesset he was appointed minister of construction. At the end of 2018 he joined Likud, shortly after which he became minister of Aliyah and Integration. In 2020 he was appointed minister of education, and the following year became minister of defense. On 5 November 2024, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that he had dismissed Gallant, effective 7 November, and sought to have Israel Katz replace him.
Karim Asad Ahmad Khan is a British lawyer specialising in international criminal law and international human rights law, who has served as Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court since 2021.
Luis Moreno Ocampo is an Argentine lawyer who served as the first prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) from 2003 to 2012. Previously, he had played a major role in Argentina's democratic transition (1983–1991).
Ismail Haniyeh was a Palestinian politician who served as chairman of the Hamas Political Bureau from May 2017 until his assassination in July 2024. He also served as prime minister of the Palestinian National Authority from March 2006 until June 2014 and Hamas leader in the Gaza Strip from June 2007 until February 2017, where he was succeeded by Yahya Sinwar.
The Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC), Fatou Bensouda, on 20 December 2019 announced an investigation into war crimes allegedly committed in Palestine by members of the Israeli military and Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups since 13 June 2014.
On 17 March 2023, following an investigation of war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide, the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants for Vladimir Putin, the president of Russia, and Maria Lvova-Belova, Russian commissioner for children's rights, alleging responsibility for the war crime of unlawful deportation and transfer of children during the Russo-Ukrainian War. The warrant against Putin is the first against the leader of a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council.
The Israel–Hamas war sparked a major diplomatic crisis, with many countries around the world reacting strongly to the conflict that affected the momentum of regional relations. At least nine countries took the drastic step of recalling their ambassadors or cutting diplomatic ties with Israel. The conflict has also resulted in a renewed focus on a two-state solution to the ongoing conflict.
The Israeli government's response to the 7 October Hamas-led attack on Israel has multiple aspects, including a military response leading to the Israeli invasion of the Gaza Strip. In October, the Knesset approved a war cabinet in Israel, adding National Unity ministers and altering the government; Benjamin Netanyahu and Benny Gantz froze non-war legislation, establishing a war cabinet with military authority.
Following the outbreak of the Israel–Hamas war on 7 October 2023, the United Kingdom has provided Israel with extensive military and diplomatic support. In response to the 7 October attacks, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak asserted that the United Kingdom "unequivocally" stands with Israel. The UK also issued an "unequivocal condemnation" of Palestinian militant group Hamas and deployed British Armed Forces personnel and assets to the Eastern Mediterranean to support Israel.
On 13 July 2024, Israeli airstrikes hit the Al-Mawasi area near Khan Yunis in the Gaza Strip during the Israel–Hamas war. The attack killed at least 90 Palestinians, among them women and children, and injured over 300. Israel said that the strike targeted Hamas top leaders. Survivors reported that they were targeted without warning in an area they were told was safe.
In July 2024, Prime Minister of Israel Benjamin Netanyahu visited Washington, D.C. to hold meetings with senior officials and deliver a speech to the United States Congress.
Balkees Jarrah is a lawyer who serves as associate director of Human Rights Watch's International Justice Program.
On 1 November 2024, it was reported that government officials close to Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu had leaked state secrets regarding the goals of the Israel–Hamas war. Shin Bet, Israel's internal security service, in cooperation with the army and police, is investigating the scandal. A number of suspects have been arrested, while the prime minister said none of his aides had been arrested. Yedioth Ahronoth reported that one of the detainees had attended confidential meetings with Netanyahu at the Defense Ministry headquarters. The American website Axios reported that the arrest of four individuals, including Eli Feldstein, spokesperson for Netanyahu, is at the center of what is considered the most significant scandal in the Israeli government since the onset of the war.
In their decision, the ICC judges said there were reasonable grounds to believe Netanyahu and Yoav Gallant were criminally responsible for acts including murder, persecution and starvation as a weapon of war as part of a "widespread and systematic attack against the civilian population of Gaza".
The court says it has reasonable grounds to believe that the two Israeli leaders are criminally responsible for the humanitarian crisis in Gaza. Among the allegations are the use of starvation as a weapon of war and crimes against humanity.
…looting of the convoys reflects the complete anarchy that prevails in Gaza due to the lack of any functioning civilian government. … Defense officials confirmed that the IDF is aware of the problem. (the Israeli government) considered making the clans to which the armed men belong responsible for distributing aid to Gaza's residents, even though some of the clans' members are involved in terrorism, and some are even affiliated with extremist organizations like the Islamic State.