In a significant development, the Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, Karim Khan, has made a bold move by seeking arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Hamas’s Gaza leader Yahya Sinwar.
The request alleges their involvement in war crimes and crimes against humanity dating back to at least October 7, 2023.
The application doesn’t stop there; Israeli Defense Minister, Yoav Gallant, Hamas’s political head Ismail Haniyeh, and the group’s military chief Mohammed Deif are also on the ICC’s radar for arrest warrants.
This move comes after a lengthy three-year investigation into Israel’s actions in the occupied territories, which has recently expanded to include Hamas’s activities as well.
Netanyahu has vehemently opposed the potential listing of senior Israeli figures on the ICC’s wanted list, calling it “an outrage of historic proportions.”
In a sharp response, Israeli War Cabinet Minister Benny Gantz, a political adversary of Netanyahu, criticized the prosecutor’s decision, stating, “Drawing parallels between the leaders of a democratic country determined to defend itself from despicable terror to leaders of a blood-thirsty terror organization is a deep distortion of justice and blatant moral bankruptcy.”
Now, ICC judges will deliberate on the evidence provided to determine if it warrants issuing the sought-after arrest warrants.
The process could take weeks or even months, highlighting the complexity and gravity of the situation.
