The chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) urged judges on Friday to swiftly issue a ruling on his request for arrest warrants against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and others involved in the Israel-Hamas conflict, The Associated Press reports.
“It is settled law that the Court has jurisdiction in this situation,” Prosecutor Karim Khan stated in a 49-page legal brief quoted by AP.
Khan pressed a panel of ICC pretrial judges to “urgently render its decisions” on the warrants he requested in May for Netanyahu, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, and three Hamas leaders, two of whom have since been eliminated.
Khan's brief was a response to legal submissions from various countries, academics, victims' groups, and rights organizations, which either challenged or supported the court's authority to issue arrest warrants in its investigation of the Gaza conflict and the October 7 Hamas attacks in Israel, according to AP.
In his May request, Khan accused Netanyahu, Gallant, and Hamas leaders Yehya Sinwar, Mohammed Deif, and Ismail Haniyeh of committing war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza and Israel.
Haniyeh and Deif have since been eliminated. Sinwar, Hamas’ top leader in Gaza who orchestrated the October 7 attacks, has been named the group’s new leader.
Recent legal arguments submitted to ICC judges have largely focused on whether the court’s authority to issue warrants for Israeli leaders is negated by a provision of the 1993 Oslo Accords. Under the agreement, the Palestinian Arabs consented to not having criminal jurisdiction over Israeli nationals.
Khan rejected the notion that the accords could invalidate the court's jurisdiction, calling the argument “without merit.”
Netanyahu has condemned the prosecutor's accusations, calling them a “disgrace,” and described them as an attack on the Israeli military and the entire nation of Israel.
President Joe Biden condemned the ICC’s move, saying in a statement, "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.”
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) also denounced the ICC announcement at the time, and said he would “work with President Biden and members on all sides to keep support for Israel strong and unwavering.”
Since Israel is not a member of the ICC, even if arrest warrants are issued, Netanyahu and Gallant are not at immediate risk of prosecution but the threat of arrest could complicate their international travel.
It is unclear when the judges will decide on Khan's request for the warrants.
(Israel National News' North American desk is keeping you updated until the start of Shabbat in New York. The time posted automatically on all Israel National News articles, however, is Israeli time.)