Biden calls ICC arrest warrant against Netanyahu 'outrageous' as Italy, Netherlands vow to follow court's ruling

US President Joe Biden slammed the International Criminal Court (ICC) calling its arrest warrants against Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Yoav Gallant “outrageous”. Biden reacted to the arrest warrants against the top Israeli leaders on Thursday, just hours after the White House released a statement and rejected the court’s ruling.

“Whatever the ICC might imply, there is no equivalence – none – between Israel and Hamas,” the POTUS said shortly after the international tribunal issued the arrest warrants against the Israeli leaders on suspicion of war crimes and crimes against humanity.

“We will always stand with Israel against threats to its security,” he added. Earlier today, the White House released a separate statement over the matter in which they outrightly rejected that court’s ruling.

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“The United States fundamentally rejects the Court’s decision to issue arrest warrants for senior Israeli officials. We remain deeply concerned by the Prosecutor’s rush to seek arrest warrants and the troubling process errors that led to this decision,” a White House National Security Council spokesperson said, adding that the US is discussing next steps with its partners.

While the US expresses outrage, Europe waits for the court’s findings

Meanwhile, Caspar Veldkamp, the Foreign Minister of the Netherlands, where the ICC is located, made it clear that the European nation would “follow the instructions. If Netanyahu or Gallant land, they will be arrested.” Meanwhile, a French Foreign Ministry spokesman said that the arrest warrant would “be in line with the court’s statutes” but declined to say if they would arrest Netanyahu or Gallant if they entered the country.

Irish Prime Minister Simon Harris went on to call the ICC’s arrest warrants against Gallant and Netanyahu as a “significant and serious step”. “The decision … is an extremely significant step,” Harris said in a statement. “These charges could not be more serious.” “Ireland respects the role of the International Criminal Court. Anyone in a position to assist it in carrying out its vital work must now do so with urgency,” he added.

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Italy also maintained that they would arrest the Israeli premier and the defence minister if they came to the country. Guido Crosetto, Italy’s defence minister, told RAI television: “We would have to arrest them.” He emphasised that it was not a political choice but that Italy was bound as a member of the ICC to act on the court’s warrants.

Amid the chaos, European Union’s foreign policy chief Josep Borrell stressed that the ICC ruling must apply to all state members of the European Union. “I take note of the decision of the @IntlCrimCourt to issue arrest warrants for Israel PM Netanyahu, former Minister Gallant, and Hamas leader Deif,” he wrote. “These decisions are binding on all States party to the Rome Statute, which includes all EU Member States,” he wrote on X, formally known as Twitter.

I take note of the decision of the @IntlCrimCourt to issue arrest warrants for Israel PM Netanyahu, former Minister Gallant, and Hamas leader Deif.

These decisions are binding on all States party to the Rome Statute, which includes all EU Member States.

— Josep Borrell Fontelles (@JosepBorrellF) November 21, 2024

The United Kingdom also maintained that it respects the independence of the top court. “We respect the independence of the International Criminal Court, which is the primary international institution for investigating and prosecuting the most serious crimes of international concern,” British Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s spokesperson said on Thursday.

“There is no moral equivalence between Israel and democracy and Hamas and Lebanese Hezbollah, which are terrorist organisations. We remain focused on pushing for an immediate ceasefire to bring an end to the devastating violence in Gaza,” the spokesperson added. Sweden and Norway also maintained that they would follow the ICC ruling.

Netanyahu finds an ally in Argentina’s Milei

While countries around the world are either welcoming or respecting the ICC ruling, Javier Milei, Argentina’s leader who is undergoing a conversion to Judaism, shared multiple condemnations of the court’s decision to issue warrants against Israeli leadership.

“The Argentine Republic expresses its profound disagreement with the recent decision of the International Criminal Court (ICC) to issue arrest warrants against the Prime Minister of Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu, and the former Minister of Defense, Yoav Gallant. This resolution ignores Israel’s legitimate right to defend itself against constant attacks by terrorist organizations such as Hamas and Hezbollah,” one of the posts read.

“Argentina stands in solidarity with Israel, reaffirms its right to protect its people, and demands the immediate release of all hostages. We call on the international community to condemn the actions of Hamas and Hezbollah, to defend Israel’s sovereignty and to act with justice and impartiality in the search for lasting peace in the region,” he added. The Argentine leader went on to emphasise that Israel has the right to defend itself.

An historic first

On Thursday, ICC issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu, Gallant and the Hamas military leader Mohammed Deif for alleged war crimes relating to the Gaza war. What made the ruling significant is the fact that this was the first time that the leaders of a democracy and western-aligned state have been charged by the court, with many calling it the most momentous decision of its 22-year history.

With this, Netanyahu and Gallant are at risk of being arrested in 124 nations that signed the Rome statute establishing the court. While Israel claimed that it had killed Deif in an airstrike in June this year, the court’s pre-trial chamber said that it would “continue to gather information” to confirm his death.

It is pertinent to note that ICC has no power to enforce its warrants but technically, any country that has signed the court’s Rome Statute would be obliged to arrest Mr Netanyahu or Gallant.

With inputs from agencies.