The Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC), Karim Khan, has urged judges to promptly consider his request for arrest warrants against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other individuals related to the conflict in Gaza. Khan emphasized that “any unjustified delay in these cases harms the rights of the victims.”
In May, Khan sought arrest warrants for Israeli officials, including Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, as well as three leaders of Hamas, in connection with alleged crimes committed during the Hamas-led attack on October 7 against southern Israel and the subsequent war in Gaza. In court documents published on Friday, Khan pointed out that the ICC has jurisdiction over Israeli citizens who commit offenses in the occupied Palestinian territories. He called on judges to dismiss legal challenges from several governments and other parties.
Khan rejected Israel’s claims that the country is conducting its own investigations into the alleged war crimes. According to ICC prosecutors, there are reasonable grounds to believe that Netanyahu, Gallant, and Hamas leaders Yahya Sinwar, military chief Mohammed al-Masri, and Hamas’ political leader Ismail Haniyeh bear criminal responsibility for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity. Haniyeh was killed in Iran in July, and the court has since refused to comment on reports of his death. Sinwar, who was behind the October 7 attack, was subsequently appointed as the group’s new leader.
Israel claims to have killed al-Masri, also known as Mohammed Deif, in an airstrike in southern Gaza in July, but Hamas has not confirmed this. Both Israel and Palestinian leaders have rejected allegations of war crimes, and representatives from both sides have criticized Khan’s decision to seek arrest warrants. Netanyahu called the allegations against him a “disgrace” and an attack on the Israeli military and all of Israel. Hamas also criticized Khan’s actions, stating that the request for the arrest of their leaders equated the “victim with the executioner.”
As Israel is not a member of the court, Netanyahu and Gallant do not face an immediate risk of prosecution even if the arrest warrants are issued. However, the threat of arrest may complicate international travel for Israeli leaders. It is unclear when the judges will make a decision regarding Khan’s request for the warrants.
The Health Ministry of Gaza reports that at least 40,265 people have been killed, and 93,144 have been injured in Israel’s war against the enclave. Estimates indicate that 1,139 people were killed in Israel during the Hamas-led attacks on October 7, and more than 200 were taken hostage.