Israel makes concerted effort to block potential International Criminal Court arrest warrant for Prime Minister Netanyahu

Israel is making a concerted effort to thwart potential plans by the International Criminal Court to issue arrest warrants against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other senior Israeli officials, an Israeli government source told The Times of Israel on Sunday.

Israel’s National Security Council is leading the campaign, according to the source cited.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is also involved. “We operate where we can,” an Israeli diplomat said.

The first source said the main focus of the feared ICC indictment will be that Israel “deliberately starved the Palestinians in Gaza”.

International Israel Defense Forces spokesman Nadav Shoshani gave a rare Shabbat briefing to foreign reporters on Israel’s support for the temporary humanitarian landing off the Gaza Strip, highlighting the country’s efforts to mitigate the ICC campaign.

The official confirmed earlier reports by Hebrew-language media that the United States is part of a last-ditch diplomatic effort to prevent the ICC from moving forward with these talks.

Writing for the Walla news site, analyst Ben Caspit said Netanyahu is “under unusual stress” over the prospect of an arrest warrant against him and other Israeli officials by the UN tribunal in The Hague, which would constitute a major deterioration of Israel’s international status.

Netanyahu was running a “round-the-clock campaign on the phone” to prevent an arrest warrant, specifically targeting US President Joe Biden’s administration, Caspit reported.

Writing for the Walla news site, analyst Ben Caspit said Netanyahu is “under unusual stress” over the prospect of an arrest warrant against him and other Israelis by the United Nations tribunal in The Hague, which would constitute a major deterioration of Israel’s international status.

Haaretz analyst Amos Harel reported that the Israeli government is working on the assumption that ICC prosecutor Karim Khan could this week issue arrest warrants against Netanyahu, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and the IDF Chief of Staff. Herzi Halevi.

Amid these reports, Foreign Minister Israel Katz said on Sunday that Israel “expects the court to refrain” from issuing arrest warrants.

“There is nothing more perverse than trying to prevent Israel from defending itself against a criminal enemy that openly calls for Israel’s destruction,” Katz said in a statement. “If the orders are issued, they will harm IDF commanders and soldiers and give a boost to the terrorist organization Hamas and the radical Islamic axis led by Iran that we are fighting against.”

Katz stressed that Israel adheres to “all the laws of war” and instructed Israel’s diplomatic missions around the world to prepare for a strong wave of anti-Semitism if the ICC issues arrest warrants.

Israel is not a member of the Hague-based court and does not recognize its jurisdiction, but the Palestinian territories were admitted as a member state in 2015.

Netanyahu said Friday that any ICC decision would not affect Israel’s actions but would set a dangerous precedent.

“Under my leadership, Israel will never accept any attempt by the International Criminal Court in The Hague to undermine its fundamental right to defend itself,” Netanyahu said in a statement on Telegram.

“While the decisions made by the Hague Court will not affect Israel’s actions, they will set a dangerous precedent that threatens soldiers and public figures,” he added.

One of Israel’s leading television news channels, Channel 12, reported last week that Israel is increasingly concerned about the possibility of the ICC issuing arrest warrants. The report stated that the Prime Minister’s Office had an “urgent discussion” on the matter. A government spokesman did not respond to questions about the TV report or its details.

The ICC investigation is separate from the genocide case launched against Israel at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), which is also based in The Hague.

The ICJ, also known as the World Court, is a UN court that deals with disputes between states, while the ICC is a treaty-based criminal court that focuses on individual criminal responsibility for war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide.