By: Jordan Sarver-Bontrager
Staff-Writer
The International Criminal Court (ICC) has issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Israeli Minister of Defense Yoav Gallant for alleged war crimes committed in the Gaza Strip since Oct. 7, 2023. The warrant also includes Hamas military leader Mohammed Deif, who is rumored to be deceased after an alleged assassination in July.
In the warrant, the ICC charged Netanyahu and Gallant of crimes against humanity including restricting humanitarian aid from the Gaza Strip, depriving Palestinians in Gaza of water, using starvation as a method of warfare, persecution of Palestinians and other inhumane acts. Deif is accused of murder, torture and hostage-taking on Oct. 7.
The ICC cannot enter Israel and arrest Netanyahu and Gallant. The court has the jurisdiction to order arrest warrants, but the only way for the two to be arrested is if they travel to a country that has vowed to uphold the ICC’s ruling.
International response to the arrest warrants has varied. Most European Union member states have vowed to abide by the ruling, including the United Kingdom, which has said it will arrest Netanyahu or Gallant if they cross into the territory.
Despite usually maintaining a diplomatic relationship with the ICC, the U.S. is not a member of the court and does not recognize its jurisdiction. President-Elect Donald Trump has expressed anti-ICC positions, telling the UN General Assembly in 2018 that the U.S. would “provide no support or recognition to the International Criminal Court.”
Many individual politicians have come out against the ICC’s ruling, and some also expressed a dissenting position before the warrants were issued, with 12 Republican senators signing a letter in May threatening the ICC with sanctions if they moved forward with pursuing arrest warrants. The letter specifically addressed warrants for Netanyahu and Israeli officials, omitting the potential warrant for Deif.
A few U.S. politicians have expressed their support for the warrants. Most notably, Abdullah Hammoud, mayor of Dearborn, Michigan, announced that Netanyahu and Gallant would be arrested if they entered the city, which has large Arab and Muslim populations. Palestinian-American U.S. Representative Rashida Tlaib (D-MI), whose district includes Dearborn, also issued a statement in support of the warrants.
This is the first time in the ICC’s history that a Western-backed nation has had arrest warrants issued for its leaders, which could set a legal precedent going forward.
