The chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, Karim Khan, has applied for arrest warrants for senior Hamas and Israeli officials, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Yoav Gallant, for war crimes and crimes against humanity. The warrants relate to alleged crimes committed during the 7 October attack by Hamas and the subsequent war in Gaza.
Khan named Hamas leaders Yahya Sinwar, Mohammed Deif, and Ismail Haniyeh for crimes including extermination, murder, hostage-taking, rape, and torture. Netanyahu and Gallant are accused of extermination, causing starvation as a method of war, denying humanitarian relief, and deliberately targeting civilians. The application notably focuses on political decision-making rather than military figures.
The ICC's pre-trial chamber will now consider the evidence, a process that typically takes two months. While Israel is not a member of the court and does not recognise its jurisdiction, the warrants could put Israeli officials at risk of arrest abroad, deepening the country's international isolation.
Netanyahu denounced the move as a 'disgrace', rejecting comparisons between Israel and Hamas. US President Joe Biden also criticised the application, calling it 'outrageous' and asserting there is no equivalence between the two sides. The ICC has previously issued warrants for leaders such as Vladimir Putin, but never for a leader of a Western-style democracy.
