ICC issues arrest warrants for Netanyahu & Gallant for war in Gaza, Mohammed Deif for Hamas attack

The International Criminal Court (ICC) on Thursday (November 21) issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defence Minister Yoav Gallant regarding the war in the Gaza Strip.

Netanyahu and Gallant are accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity during the ongoing Israel-Hamas War in Gaza.

The ICC in a press release said that that it found reasonable grounds to believe that Netanyahu and Gallant bear criminal responsibility for the following crimes: the war crime of starvation as a method of warfare; and the crimes against humanity of murder, persecution, and other inhumane acts.

The ICC has charged Netanyahu and Gallant for actions between October 8, 2023 until at least May 20, 2024.

Following the attack by Hamas on Israel on October 7, 2023, Israel launched a war on the Iran-backed, Gaza-based terrorist group, which has devastated much of the Palestinian enclave in the yearlong conflict. Israel has been widely condemned for indiscriminate bombardment that led to large-scale civilian casualties.

Beside Netanyahu and Gallant, the ICC also issued arrest warrant for Hamas military chief Mohammed Deif regarding actions during the October 7 terrorist attack, indicting him for killings, rape, sexual violence, etc. The ICC also said that Hamas subjected hostages taken during the October 7 attack to sexual and gender-based violence.

Reasonable grounds for war crimes, crimes against humanity: ICC

The ICC said in the press release that it found reasonable grounds to believe that Netanyahu and Gallant intentionally and knowingly deprived civilians in Gaza of things essential to survival, such as food, water, medicine, medical supplies, fuel, and electricity.

“This finding is based on the role of Mr Netanyahu and Mr Gallant in impeding humanitarian aid in violation of international humanitarian law and their failure to facilitate relief by all means at its disposal. The Chamber found that their conduct led to the disruption of the ability of humanitarian organisations to provide food and other essential goods to the population in need in Gaza. The aforementioned restrictions together with cutting off electricity and reducing fuel supply also had a severe impact on the availability of water in Gaza and the ability of hospitals to provide medical care,” said the ICC in the press release.

Even when humanitarian assistance was provided to Gazans, it was neither sufficient nor unconditional, said the ICC.

“They [humanitarian assistance] were not made to fulfil Israel’s obligations under international humanitarian law or to ensure that the civilian population in Gaza would be adequately supplied with goods in need. In fact, they were a response to the pressure of the international community or requests by the United States of America,” said the ICC.

Despite warnings and appeals made by the United Nations Security Council (UN) and a host of nations, multilateral organisations, and non-governmental organisations, only “minimal humanitarian assistance was authorised” and, in this regard, the ICC took into account the “prolonged period of deprivation and Mr Netanyahu’s statement connecting the halt in the essential goods and humanitarian aid with the goals of war”.

The ICC further said that Netanyahu and Gallant’s actions were calculated to bring death in Gaza, including deaths of children by dehydration and malnutrition.

The ICC also found reasonable ground that Netanyahu and Gallant’s actions contributed to war crime of starvation as a method of warfare.

Overall, the ICC found reasonable grounds to conclude that Netanyahu and Gallant’s actions deprived Palestinian civilians of their fundamental rights, including the rights of and health, because they were targeted based on their political or national affiliations. The ICC said that therefore it found reasonable grounds to assess that the two committed crime against humanity of persecution against Palestinians.

ICC also issues arrest warrant for Hamas’ Mohammed Deif

Beside Netanyahu and Gallant, the ICC also issued arrest warrants against Mohammed Deif, the shadowy military chief of Hamas. He and former Hamas chief Yahya Sinwar were the principal architects of the October 7 attacks on Israel.

On August 1, Israel said that Deif had been killed in an airstrike in Gaza the previous month . However, earlier this month, Hamas told Iranian state media that Deif was alive.

Initially, the ICC prosecutor Karim Khan had also sought arrest warrants for Sinwar and former Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh . Both were killed later. While Haniyeh was assassinated in Iranian capital Tehran, Sinwar was killed in a gunfight in Gaza. Following their deaths, requests for warrants were withdrawn.

However, the ICC noted in the press release that both Israeli and Palestinian authorities could not confirm Deif’s death to prosecutors. In the absence of convincing evidence of his death, the ICC issued warrant for him.

“On 15 November 2024, the Prosecution, referring to information from both the Israeli and Palestinian authorities, notified the Chamber that it is not in a position to determine whether Mr Deif has been killed or remains alive. Therefore, the Chamber issues the present warrant of arrest,” said the ICC in press release.

The ICC found reasonable grounds to conclude that Deif has been responsible for following crimes during the October 7 attack: crimes against humanity of murder; extermination; torture; and rape and other form of sexual violence ; as well as the war crimes of murder, cruel treatment, torture; taking hostages; outrages upon personal dignity; and rape and other form of sexual violence.

The ICC said that it found that hostages taken by Hamas, predominantly women, were subjected to sexual and gender-based violence, including forced penetration, forced nudity, and humiliating and degrading treatment during captivity.

“On the basis of the material presented, the Chamber found reasonable grounds to believe that the crimes of torture as a crime against humanity and war crime, rape and other forms of sexual violence as crimes against humanity and war crimes, cruel treatment as a war crime, and outrages upon personal dignity as a war crime were committed against these persons during the relevant period,” said the ICC in the press release.

The ICC concluded that Deif, Haniyeh, and Sinwar were in agreement about the October 7 attack.