At a recent convening at The Hague, state representatives to the ICC agonized over the disastrous implications for the international rules-based order should Benjamin Netanyahu and Yoav Gallant evade accountability for war crimes in Gaza.
On the heels of the ICC issuing arrest warrants for Israeli officials, Israel killed at least 87 Palestinians on Thursday in strikes across the Gaza Strip, as well as nine Palestinians in Jenin in the northern occupied West Bank.
The International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes committed in Gaza. As a result, the two will be unable to travel to at least 124 countries.
Benjamin Netanyahu’s firing of Defense Minister Yoav Gallant has removed the one minor restraint on expanding Israel’s regional war against Iran and the axis of resistance. International pressure to stop Israel is needed now more than ever.
The delay in issuing ICC warrants for Benjamin Netanyahu and Yoav Gallant, followed by the replacement of the presiding judge, has raised serious concerns about the court’s functioning and possible machinations behind the scenes.
ICC Chief Prosecutor Karim Khan’s request for arrest warrants against Benjamin Netanyahu and Yoav Gallant has been mired in attempts to shield Israel from accountability since May, but this soon could change.
Hamas demands a plan to implement the original ceasefire deal proposed by the U.S. last July ahead of a new round of negotiations set to start this week.
At least 210 Palestinians were killed and 400 others were injured in the central Gaza Strip on Sunday after Israeli forces carried out a “rescue operation” to retrieve four captives. Reports of U.S. involvement in the operation have sparked backlash.
The ICJ demands Israel cease its Rafah invasion, but compliance is “probably less than zero,” former UN Special Rapporteur Michael Lynk tells Mondoweiss.