The ICC issued arrest warrants in November for Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in the besieged Gaza Strip.
Karim Khan, the Prosecutor for the International Criminal Court (ICC), has defended the issuance of an arrest warrant against Israel’s prime minister for alleged war crimes in Gaza, accusing Israel of making “no real effort” to investigate the charges.
“We’re here as a court of last resort and …as we speak right now, we haven’t seen any real effort by the State of Israel to take action that would meet the established jurisprudence, which is investigations regarding the same suspects for the same conduct,” Khan told Reuters in an interview on Thursday. “That can change and I hope it does.”
International Criminal Court (ICC) Prosecutor Karim Khan said Israel had made “no real effort” to investigate war crimes accusations brought against it during the war in Gaza.
In an interview with Reuters, Khan also stood by his decision over the arrest warrant issued against… pic.twitter.com/f0a7nPmkeS
— Quds News Network (@QudsNen) January 17, 2025
The ICC issued arrest warrants in November for Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in the besieged Gaza Strip. The order compels the ICC’s 124 member states to arrest them should they enter their territory.
Noting that Israel had good legal expertise, Khan said Israel could still demonstrate its willingness to investigate, he reportedly said.
The Reuters report said an Israeli probe “could have led to the case being handed back to Israeli courts under so-called complementary principles.”
However, he said “the question is have those judges, have those prosecutors, have those legal instruments been used to properly scrutinise the allegations that we’ve seen in the occupied Palestinian territories, in the State of Palestine? And I think the answer to that was ‘no’.”
US Sanctions ICC
Last week, the US House of Representatives voted to sanction the ICC following its issuance of the arrest warrants.
The so-called ‘Illegitimate Court Counteraction Act’ passed with an overwhelming 243 to 140 votes in favor. The act imposes sanctions on any foreigner who investigates, arrests, detains, or prosecutes US citizens or citizens of allied countries, including Israel, who are not members of the court.
US House Passes Bill to Sanction ICC after Arrest Warrants for Netanyahu, Gallant
Khan said it was “unwanted and unwelcome that an institution that is a child of Nuremberg …is threatened with sanctions.”
“It should make people take note because this court is not owned by the prosecutor or by judges. We have 125 states,” he continued.
Khan noted that it was “a matter that should make all people of conscience be concerned.”
He declined to discuss what sanctions could mean for the court, the Reuters report said.
Staggering Death Toll
The ongoing Israeli assault on the Gaza Strip, which began on October 7, 2023, has led to a humanitarian crisis of unprecedented scale. As the death toll among besieged and starved Palestinian civilians continues to rise daily, Israel is currently facing charges of genocide against Palestinians before the International Court of Justice (ICJ).
According to Gaza’s Ministry of Health, at least 46,707 Palestinians have been killed, and 110,265 wounded in Israel’s ongoing genocide in Gaza starting on October 7, 2023.
Israeli airstrikes on Gaza have killed 71 Palestinians, including 19 children and 24 women, since the ceasefire was announced. Over 200 have been injured, reports Civil Defense. #GazaUnderAttack #HumanRightshttps://t.co/mb8bCH4WkK
— The Palestine Chronicle (@PalestineChron) January 16, 2025
The toll is expected to rise further, with at least 11,000 people still unaccounted for, presumed dead under the rubble of their homes across Gaza.
The war, which Palestinians call “Operation Al-Aqsa Flood,” began after a military operation carried out by Hamas on Israeli territory. Israel reports that 1,139 of its soldiers and civilians were killed during the initial attack on October 7. However, Israeli media have raised concerns that a significant number of Israeli casualties were caused by ‘friendly fire’ during the assault.
Women and Children
Human rights organizations, both Palestinian and international, have reported that the overwhelming majority of the casualties in Gaza are women and children. The ongoing violence has also exacerbated an acute famine, with thousands of children among the dead, highlighting the severity of the humanitarian disaster.
An amazing crowd gathered outside the State Department today, braving the cold and the snow, to stand in solidarity with Gaza.
On Secretary Blinken’s last day in office, we came to make one thing clear: his legacy will forever be tied to genocide.
We will keep showing up until… pic.twitter.com/xPlkvCuoWN— Medea Benjamin (@medeabenjamin) January 17, 2025
The war has displaced nearly two million people from their homes across Gaza, with the majority of the displaced forced into the already overcrowded southern region of the Strip. The population in Gaza remains trapped in the ongoing conflict, with little access to basic necessities such as food, water, and medical care.
(The Palestine Chronicle)
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