The Pre-Trial Chamber of the International Criminal Court (ICC) has issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Galland for crimes against humanity and war crimes.
“The Pre-Trial Chamber has issued arrest warrants for two individuals, Mr. Benjamin Netanyahu and Mr. Yoav Galland, for crimes against humanity and war crimes committed at least between October 8, 2023, and at least May 20, 2024, the date on which the prosecution filed the request for arrest warrants,” the ICC website said on Thursday.
The Pre-Trial Chamber reportedly ruled on two requests filed by Israel on September 26, 2024.
“In the first request, Israel challenged the Court’s jurisdiction over the situation in the State of Palestine in general and over Israeli citizens in particular, pursuant to Article 19(2) of the Statute. In the second request, Israel requested the Chamber to order the Prosecutor’s Office to provide a new notification of the commencement of the investigation to its authorities pursuant to Article 18(1) of the Statute. Israel also requested the Chamber to discontinue any proceedings before the Court in the relevant situation, including the consideration of the applications for arrest warrants for Mr. Benjamin Netanyahu and Mr. Yoav Gallant filed by the Prosecutor’s Office on May 20, 2024,” the statement said.
The Chamber noted that Israel’s acceptance of the Court’s jurisdiction was not necessary, as the Court could exercise its jurisdiction on the basis of Palestinian territorial jurisdiction, as determined by the Pre-Trial Chamber I in its previous composition. In addition, the Chamber considered that, pursuant to Article 19(1) of the Statute, States are not entitled to challenge the Court’s jurisdiction under Article 19(2) before the arrest warrant is issued. Israel’s objection is therefore premature. This is without prejudice to any future possible objections to the Court’s jurisdiction and/or admissibility in any particular case.
It is noted that the Chamber also rejected Israel’s request under Article 18(1) of the Statute. “The Chamber recalled that the Prosecution notified Israel of the commencement of the investigation in 2021. At that time, despite a request for clarification from the prosecution, Israel decided not to file any requests for a continuance. In addition, the Chamber decided that the parameters of the investigation in this situation remained unchanged, and, as a result, no new notification to the State of Israel was required. In light of this, the judges concluded that there were no grounds for discontinuing the consideration of the applications for arrest warrants,” the statement said.
The Chamber found reasonable grounds to believe that Mr. Netanyahu, born on October 21, 1949, the Prime Minister of Israel at the time of the relevant act, and Mr. Gallant, born on November 8, 1958, the Minister of Defense of Israel at the time of the alleged act, are criminally responsible for the following crimes as accomplices for committing acts together with other persons the war crime of starvation as a method of warfare; and crimes against humanity of murder, persecution and other inhumane acts; and crimes against humanity of murder, persecution and other inhumane acts.
The Chamber also found reasonable grounds to believe that Mr. Netanyahu and Mr. Gallant are criminally responsible as civilian commanders for the war crime of intentionally directing an attack against a civilian population.
As reported, on April 20, 2024, it became known that the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC), Kareem Khan, is requesting arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, and the heads of the Islamic Movement of Hamas, the military wing and the political bureau of Hamas in connection with war crimes and crimes against humanity of October 8, 2023, according to the ICC website.
