International Criminal Court issues arrest warrants for Benjamin Netanyahu

International Criminal Court issues arrest warrants for Benjamin Netanyahu, Yoav Gallant and Mohammed Deif

The International Criminal Court (ICC) has issued arrest warrants for the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, former defence minister Yoav Gallant, as well as senior Hamas official Mohammed Deif.

The warrants are for alleged crimes against humanity and war crimes committed during the Israel-Gaza war.

The ICC said there were reasonable grounds to believe Mr Netanyahu and Mr Gallant "bear responsibility for … the war crime of starvation as a method of warfare; and the crimes against humanity of murder, persecution, and other inhumane acts".

Israel challenged the legality of the ICC prosecutor's request to issue arrest warrants. The court has rejected it, saying Israel's acceptance of the court's jurisdiction is not required.

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The Israeli Prime Minister's office was quick to respond to the news, rejecting it as "anti-Semitic".

"Israel rejects with disgust the absurd and false actions and charges against it by the International Criminal Court, which is a biased and discriminatory political body," the office said in a statement.

"There is nothing more just than the war that Israel has been waging in Gaza since the seventh day of October 2023, after the terrorist organization Hamas launched a murderous attack against it, and carried out the greatest massacre committed against the Jewish people since the Holocaust.

"Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu will not give in to pressure, will not flinch and will not withdraw until all the war goals set by Israel at the start of the campaign are achieved."

Senior Hamas official Basem Naim said the decision was an "important step on the path to justice".

"But it remains a limited and spiritual step if it is not backed practically by all countries."

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