Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, as well as senior Hamas military leader Mohammed Deif, were reportedly the targets of new arrest warrants issued by the International Criminal Court on Thursday.
The International Criminal Court (ICC) issued a warrant for Deif, who is believed to have been slain and was involved in the orchestration of the Oct. 7, 2023, attacks on Israel, which resulted in the deaths of 1,200 individuals and the abduction of over 240 others. Deif is accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity.
The ICC’s warrants for Netanyahu and Gallant allege that they committed war crimes and crimes against humanity during the Israeli offensive in the Gaza Strip.
These crimes include the use of starvation as a weapon and the ordering of assaults against civilians.
The court stated that it did not identify sufficient evidence to support the filing of an extermination charge, which would preclude allegations that are akin to genocide.
The warrants present a challenge to Israel’s efforts to garner global support, as they may result in the arrest of Netanyahu and Gallant if they travel to countries under the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court.
The ICC’s reputation was also jeopardized by the warrants, as the U.S. and Israel criticized it for conducting an investigation into a democratic nation that was responding to an attack by a U.S.-designated terror organization.
Following the assault on October 7, Israel invaded Gaza. According to Palestinian health authorities, the level of devastation, food shortages have been brutal and resulted in a death toll of at least 44,000.
In May, the court’s prosecutor requested the warrants, which garnered praise from numerous nations but incited indignation from the Biden administration, a significant portion of the U.S. Congress, and Israeli officials.
The ICC’s May application for warrants also named numerous other Hamas leaders; however, Israel has since killed them.
On Thursday, the International Criminal Court (ICC) announced that it had withdrawn the application for warrants for Hamas leaders Ismail Haniyeh and Yahya Sinwar, who have been verified dead.
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