A show of unity and agreement within Israel and among Israeli friends – because the decision of the prosecutor in The Hague is a scandal, no less. “The scandalous comparison of the prosecutor in The Hague between the leaders of Israel and the leaders of the terrorist organization Hamas is an indelible historical crime and a clear expression of anti-Semitism.” It was written in a statement signed by about 95% of the members of the Knesset in Israel. Prime Minister Netanyahu: “He brutally poured gasoline on the flames of anti-Semitism that are raging around the world.” Jurists say – the strange behavior of the prosecutor who unexpectedly canceled his visit to Israel to learn more about the behavior of the army and ruled without closely examining the issue, only strengthens the suspicions against him
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attacked the Prosecutor General of the International Criminal Court in The Hague, Karim Khan, following the arrest warrants he sought to issue against him and Defense Minister Yoav Galant: “He brutally poured gasoline on the flames of anti-Semitism that are raging around the world. He took his place among the great anti-Semites of modern times. Now he stands alongside those infamous German judges who wore their robes and upheld laws that denied the Jewish people their most basic rights, allowing the Nazis to commit the worst crime in history.
80 years ago the Jewish people were completely defenseless against our enemies. Those days are over. Now the Jewish people have a state and an army to protect it. Despite Khan’s blood plot, Israel will continue to conduct the war in full compliance with international law. We will continue to take unprecedented measures not to harm innocent citizens and ensure that humanitarian aid reaches those who need it. The absurd and false order of the prosecutor in The Hague is not only directed against the Prime Minister of Israel and the Minister of Defense – it is directed against the entire State of Israel. It is directed against the IDF soldiers, who are fighting with supreme heroism against the vile Hamas murderers, who attacked us with terrible cruelty on October 7.”
In Israel, they were surprised by the unusual and precedent-setting announcement by the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court in The Hague, Karim Khan, after the Prosecutor’s team was supposed to land in Israel to meet with professional officials who would present to him how Israel is acting in accordance with international law in the war in Gaza. This is despite the fact that Israel does not officially recognize the tribunal’s authority over it, since it is not a member of it.
In recent months, a discreet and unusual conversation took place between Israeli officials and the prosecutor’s team in an attempt to present to him its actions in accordance with the law. The meeting that was supposed to take place was also intended to lead to Khan’s official visit to Israel.
But instead of the visit, the prosecutor announced the submission of the request to issue the warrants. There are elements in Israel who consider the conduct to be in bad faith. During the visit, Khan was supposed to be exposed to the Israeli justice system and how the army operates according to the provisions of international humanitarian law in its operations in Gaza. The independence of the judicial system is significant and critical as part of the “principle of complementarity”, according to which the court does not investigate a country where there is a reliable judicial system that conducts an investigation independently. Israel claims that beyond the issue of authority, there is no room for issuing arrest warrants due to the principle of complementarity.
In the US, the UK and other countries have already announced that they condemn the decision. At the same time, the US president has already announced that the decision is “scandalous”, and made it clear that the US will stand by Israel.
Almost all European countries are members of the International Criminal Court in The Hague, as well as Canada, Australia, Japan, countries in Latin America and Africa, Jordan and Tunisia. Not members of the tribunal: USA, China and Russia.
At the same time, 106 members of the Knesset in Israel, coalition and opposition, signed a statement against the decision of the prosecutor at the Criminal Court in The Hague regarding the arrest warrants for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Galant.
The State of Israel is in the midst of a just war against a criminal terrorist organization,” the statement said. “The IDF is the most moral army in the world. Our heroic soldiers fight with unsurpassed courage and morality, in accordance with international law, as no other army has ever done.
“The scandalous comparison of the prosecutor in The Hague between the leaders of Israel and the leaders of the terrorist organization Hamas is an indelible historical crime and a clear expression of anti-Semitism. We reject it with disgust. 80 years after the Holocaust, no one will tie the hands of the Jewish state to defend itself.”
Now the three judges at the tribunal have to make a decision based on the request submitted by the plaintiff and the accompanying evidence. The decision to issue arrest warrants is given without receiving the parties’ response, and it can be given within days, weeks and at most months.
One of the judges sat on the panel that determined in 2021 that the court was authorized to hear the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and allowed a criminal investigation against Israeli officials and against Hamas.