The International Criminal Court (ICC) on Thursday issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former defence minister Yoav Gallant, together with a former Hamas commander, citing allegations of war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Judges on the ICC said there were reasonable grounds that the three men bore “criminal responsibility” for the alleged crimes committed “from at least 8 October 2023 until at least 20 May 2024” – the day the Prosecution filed the applications for warrants of arrest – the Court said in a statement.
“With regard to the crimes, the [Court’s Pre-Trial Chamber I] found reasonable grounds to believe that Mr. Netanyahu…and Mr. Gallant…bear criminal responsibility for the following crimes 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,” said the ICC.
The arrest warrants followed the ICC’s rejection of Israel’s challenges to the Court’s jurisdiction.
The warrant for Hamas military commander Mohammed Deif also alleges crimes against humanity and war crimes. However, Israeli authorities have claimed that he was killed in an air strike in Gaza, in July.
The ICC said it was continuing to gather information regarding the reported death of Mr. Deif.
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