Italy's Foreign Minister, Antonio Tajani, on Monday condemned the decision by International Criminal Court (ICC) Chief Prosecutor Karim Khan to seek arrest warrants against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, Reuters reported.
"It seems to me truly singular, I would say unacceptable, to equate a government legitimately elected by the people in a democracy with a terrorist organization that is the cause of everything that is happening in the Middle East," Tajani was quoted as having told a TV show.
President Isaac Herzog earlier condemned the ICC Chief Prosecutor, calling his announcement “beyond outrageous” and adding that it “shows the extent to which the international judicial system is in danger of collapsing.”
"Taken in bad faith, this one-sided move represents a unilateral political step that emboldens terrorists around the world, and violates all the basic rules of the court according to the principle of complementarity and other legal norms," added Herzog.
"Hamas’ leaders are oppressive dictators guilty of launching mass murder, mass rape, and mass kidnappings of men, women, children and babies," Herzog continued.
He added, "Any attempt to draw parallels between these atrocious terrorists and a democratically elected government of Israel - working to fulfill its duty to defend and protect its citizens entirely in adherence to the principles of international law – is outrageous and cannot be accepted by anyone."
US President Joe Biden condemned the move as well.
"The ICC prosecutor’s application for arrest warrants against Israeli leaders is outrageous. And let me be clear: whatever this prosecutor might imply, there is no equivalence — none — between Israel and Hamas. We will always stand with Israel against threats to its security," Biden said.