The ICC is located in The Hague, Netherlands. The International Criminal Court has issued arrest warrants for Benjamin Netanyahu, Yoav Galant, and a Hamas leader International Law
The International Criminal Court (ICC) has issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Galant. They are accused of committing crimes against humanity and war crimes between October 7, 2023 and May 20, 2024. The court also issued an arrest warrant for Hamas commander Mohammed Deif, who Israeli authorities said was killed in an airstrike in Gaza in July.
Pre-Trial Chamber I of the International Criminal Court unanimously ruled on two requests submitted by Israel on 26 September 2024. In the first request, Israel challenged the jurisdiction of the Court over the situation in the State of Palestine in general and over Israeli citizens in particular, based on Article 19(2) of the Rome Statute. In the second request, the Israeli authorities sought an order that the Prosecution file a new notice of investigation pursuant to Article 18(1).
Israel also asked the Chamber to stay any proceedings before the Court in the relevant situation, including consideration of applications to issue arrest warrants for Benjamin Netanyahu and Yoav Galant.
Substance of the charges
International Criminal Court Prosecutor Karim Khan asked the ICC to issue arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Galant, and three leaders of the Palestinian group Hamas on May 20 this year.
On Thursday, Pre-Trial Chamber I of the International Criminal Court found that Netanyahu and Galant “intentionally and knowingly” deprived the civilian population of Gaza of items essential to survival, including food, water, medicine, and access to fuel and electricity. The statement also said the defendants were responsible for causing suffering to people in need of medical treatment because they intentionally restricted or obstructed the delivery of vital drugs, such as anesthesia and anaesthesia, to the Gaza Strip.
The Chamber found that the defendants were criminally responsible for the following crimes as co-perpetrators with others: the war crime of starvation as a method of warfare, and crimes against humanity such as murder, persecution and other inhumane acts.
The Chamber also found reasonable grounds to believe that Netanyahu and Galant were criminally responsible for the war crime of intentionally directing an attack against a civilian population.
The arrest warrant for Hamas commander Mohammed Deif also contains charges of crimes against humanity and war crimes. Israel previously said Deif was killed in an airstrike in Gaza in July.
“The Chamber found reasonable grounds to believe that Mr. Deif was responsible for the crimes against humanity of murder, torture, rape and other forms of sexual violence, and the war crimes of murder, cruel treatment, torture, hostage-taking, outrages upon personal dignity, rape and other forms of sexual violence.”
Disclosure of Warrants
The arrest warrants for the accused are classified to protect witnesses and ensure the security of the investigation. However, the Chamber decided to release some of the information because the accused are believed to have continued to commit the acts described in the arrest warrants. In addition, the Chamber considered that it was in the interests of the victims and their families to notify them of the existence of the orders.