A number of Western leaders, together with US President Joe Biden, have rejected the ICC’s chief prosecutor’s resolution to hunt arrest warrants for Israeli and Hamas leaders. In the meantime, others have known as for the safety of the battle crimes court docket’s impartiality.
Following the Worldwide Prison Courtroom’s chief prosecutor’s resolution to hunt arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and three Hamas leaders, international leaders started voicing their opinions on the transfer.
ICC Chief Prosecutor Karim Khan accused Netanyahu and Protection Minister Yoav Gallant of utilizing hunger as a way of warfare and concentrating on civilians. Hamas leaders Yehya Sinwar, Mohammed Deif, and Ismail Haniyeh are additionally accused of battle crimes and crimes towards humanity.
In an announcement, US President Joe Biden supported the Israeli chief and mentioned: “Let me be clear: No matter this prosecutor may indicate, there isn’t a equivalence – none – between Israel and Hamas.”
The US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken mentioned the US “essentially rejects” the choice. “We reject the Prosecutor’s equivalence of Israel with Hamas,” the assertion mentioned. “It’s shameful.”
Via his X account, Netanyahu printed a video wherein he rejected “with disgust” the prosecutor’s comparability of his authorities with Hamas.
“With what audacity do you examine Hamas that murdered, burned, butchered, decapitated, raped and kidnapped our brothers and sisters, and the IDF troopers combating a simply battle,” Netanyahu mentioned.
Different Israeli officers reminiscent of Israeli President Isaac Herzog and Israeli International Minister Israel Katz condemned what they name “a comparability between their very own and Hamas”.
“Any try to attract parallels between these atrocious terrorists and a democratically elected authorities of Israel – working to fullfil its responsibility to defend and defend its residents completely in adherence to the rules of worldwide regulation – is outrageous and can’t be accepted by anybody,” Herzog mentioned.
Hamas additionally denounced the ICC prosecutor’s actions, saying the request to arrest its leaders “equates the sufferer with the executioner.”
“Hamas strongly denounces the makes an attempt of the Prosecutor of the Worldwide Prison Courtroom to equate the sufferer with the executioner by issuing arrest warrants towards various Palestinian resistance leaders,” Hamas mentioned.
Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer mentioned that whereas he revered the independence of the ICC, it’s “non-comprehensible” that the leaders of Hamas have been talked about as equals because the “democratically elected representatives” of Israel.
A spokesperson for UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak mentioned: “This motion shouldn’t be useful in relation to reaching a pause within the combating, getting hostages out or getting humanitarian help in.”
“The UK, as with different nations, doesn’t but recognise Palestine as a state and Israel shouldn’t be a state social gathering to the Rome Statute.”
Eire’s minister for International Affairs and Minister for Defence, Micheál Martin defended the ICC and condemned the threats towards the court docket.
South Africa additionally welcomed the information and supported the chief prosecutor.
“The regulation should be utilized equally to all with a purpose to uphold the worldwide rule of regulation, guarantee accountability for people who commit heinous crimes and defend the rights of victims,” an announcement from the workplace of President Cyril Ramaphosa learn.
