Netanyahu: Faced with an arrest warrant from the International Court of Justice? – Pressure not to issue

The Prime Minister of Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu, is living days of anxiety, as according to Israeli media he fears that an arrest warrant may be issued against him by the International Criminal Court in The Hague next week. According to the same information, a warrant is expected for the Minister of Defense Yoav Galand as well as for the Chief of the General Staff of the Israeli Army Herji Halevi.

Reports from several Israeli media outlets suggest that Netanyahu has engaged in a “marathon” of phone calls and lobbying international leaders in order to prevent the warrant from being issued.

“Under pressure”

At the Walla news site, analyst Ben Caspit writes that Netanyahu is under “unusual pressure” over the prospect of arrest warrants being issued against him and other Israelis by the UN court in The Hague, which would significantly worsen Israel’s international standing. .

Netanyahu said upcoming ICC rulings could set ‘dangerous precedent’

Netanyahu is leading a “relentless push” to prevent an arrest warrant, focusing particularly on the administration of US President Joe Biden, Caspit writes.

Haaretz analyst Amos Harel reports that the Israeli government is working under the assumption that ICC prosecutor Karim Khan may issue the arrest warrants this week.

The US, which, like Israel, is among the countries that withdrew its signature from the Rome Statute (the founding treaty of the International Criminal Court that provides for criminal liability for crimes), is already involved in the effort to block the warrants arrest, according to Harel.

Statements on the International Court of Justice

Netanyahu’s latest public statement on the war said the upcoming ICC rulings could set a “dangerous precedent.”

“We will never stop defending ourselves. “While the Hague court’s rulings will not affect Israel’s actions, they will set a dangerous precedent that will threaten the soldiers and officials of any republic fighting criminal terrorism and aggression,” he said Friday.