International Criminal Court requests simultaneous arrest warrants for Israeli and Hamas leaders
- ICC's position remains unchanged despite opposition from Israel, Hamas, and the United States
Editor
International Criminal Court (ICC) Chief Prosecutor Karim Khan took the groundbreaking step of requesting arrest warrants for Israeli and Hamas leaders on the 20th (local time).
Prosecutor Khan said they were criminally responsible for war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in the Gaza Strip. In a statement released this afternoon, he requested arrest warrants from the ICC Pre-Trial Chamber for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, and three leaders of Hamas, including Yahya Sinwar, Muhammad Deif, and Ismail Haniyeh, on the same charge. He explained that an arrest warrant had been requested.
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| International Criminal Court in The Hague |
Prosecutor Khan pointed out that Israel's Prime Minister and Defense Minister violated many of the ICC's Rome Statute, including intentional and war criminal killings, ordering intentional attacks on civilians, and using starvation as a means of war. He also said that after examining interviews with survivors and witnesses, video, photo and audio materials, and satellite images, he pointed out that "Israel has deliberately and systematically deprived civilians in the Gaza Strip of things essential to their survival."
Regarding the three Hamas leaders, he said they were suspected of killing hundreds of Israeli civilians and taking at least 245 hostages in a Hamas-led attack in southern Israel on October 7 last year. It was also stated that among the numerous crimes committed since the Gaza conflict broke out, the government is criminally responsible for crimes against humanity such as sexual assault and torture.
The ICC's move was met with strong opposition from both Israel and Hamas. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the ICC's decision was a disgrace and an attack on Israel. Hamas demanded that the request be canceled, accusing Karim Khan of trying to “equate the victims with the executioners.”
U.S. President Biden also issued a statement, saying that the request for a warrant against an Israeli leader is absurd, and emphasized that Israel and Hamas should not be treated on the same level.
Despite the backlash, the ICC is an international tribunal with the power to prosecute individuals for international crimes, including genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes, and crimes of aggression, and its position is to hold those responsible for such crimes accountable.
The International Criminal Court (ICC, Cour pénale internationale, CPI) is an international court that trials international criminals. The Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court came into effect on July 1, 2002. It was established in The Hague, Netherlands, under the 'Criminal Court'.
The ICC is a permanent international criminal court whose purpose is to punish individuals who have committed 'the most serious crimes of concern to the entire international community.' The ICC's jurisdiction under Article 5, Paragraph 1 of the Rome Statute covers genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes, and crimes of aggression.
Judges and prosecutors are elected by the Assembly of States Parties (ASP), and the official languages are English and French.
Although it is often confused with the International Court of Justice (ICJ), the ICJ is a judicial organ of the United Nations and is a completely different court from the ICC because it only handles legal disputes between states.
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