International Criminal Court prosecutor seeks arrest warrants for Netanyahu, his defense minister and Hamas leaders

Karim Khan, chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, has requested arrest warrants against three Hamas leaders, including Yahya Sinwar and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, as well as its Defense Minister Yoav Galant, who are accused of war and crimes against humanity. As the prosecutor said in an exclusive interview with CNN on Monday and the court confirmed in a statement, the humanity behind the October 7 attacks against Israel and the subsequent war in Gaza.

In the statement, Khan said he has requested an arrest warrant for Yahya Sinwar, the head of Hamas in Gaza; exiled Hamas political leader Ismail Haniye; and Mohammed Diab Ibrahim al-Masri, known as Mohammed Deif, head of Hamas’s military wing (Al Qassam Brigades), “based on evidence collected and examined by his office.” They have also requested arrest warrants for Netanyahu and Galant, as they have been rumored to do for some time, which has put Israeli leaders on alert.

Netanyahu said through social networks that “Israel hopes that the leaders of the free world will firmly oppose the ICC’s outrageous attack on Israel’s inherent right to self-defense.” “We hope they will use all the means at their disposal to stop this dangerous measure,” the far-right urged without specifying. The Israeli press was reporting in recent weeks that the court was preparing arrest warrants against the prime minister and other senior officials for their role in the Gaza war.

Khan explained in his statement that the requests are the result of “an independent and impartial investigation” conducted by his “hard-working” office, guided by the obligation to “examine incriminating and exculpatory evidence equally.” ”

Now, judges at the Hague-based court must decide whether to grant the Attorney General’s request. Khan has stated that “the independent judges of the International Criminal Court are the sole arbiters of whether the standards required for issuing an arrest warrant have been met.”

“If they accept my requests and issue the requested orders, I will work to arrest the named persons. I trust all Member States of the Rome Statute to take these requests and subsequent judicial decisions with the same seriousness as they have shown in other situations when fulfilling their obligations under the statute. “I stand ready to work also with non-member states in our shared pursuit of accountability,” the Attorney General elaborated. The Rome Statute is the founding treaty of the ICC, signed by 124 countries, but Israel is not among them.