By accusing the heads of Israel and Hamas of war crimes, the International Criminal Court's top prosecutor placed them among world leaders infamous for heinous acts against humanity. The chief prosecutor, Karim Khan, announced arrest warrants Monday against two Israeli leaders — including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu — and three Hamas leaders.
The prosecutor focused on actions taken by Hamas on October 7 when militants stormed southern Israel, killing around 1,200 people and taking some 250 hostages, and on Israel's military response in Gaza, which has killed roughly 35,000 Palestinians, according to the Gaza health ministry.
Netanyahu condemned the decision Monday, calling it "a complete distortion of reality."
"I reject with disgust the Hague prosecutor's comparison between democratic Israel and the mass murderers of Hamas," Netanyahu said.
In a statement, Hamas accused the prosecutor of trying to "equate the victim with the executioner." It said it has the right to resist Israeli occupation, including "armed resistance."
The ICC is the permanent court of last resort, established in 2002 to prosecute individuals for war crimes, crimes against humanity, genocide, and the crime of aggression. Several countries don't accept the court's jurisdiction, including Israel, the United States, China and Russia.
The Hamas officials — Ismail Haniyeh, Yahya Sinwar, and Mohammed Deif — are accused of planning and instigating eight war crimes and crimes against humanity, among them extermination, murder, taking hostages, rape, and torture.
"The crimes against humanity charged were part of a widespread and systematic attack against the civilian population of Israel by Hamas," the decision released today by the ICC stated.
"There are reasonable grounds to believe that hostages taken from Israel have been kept in inhumane conditions and that some have been subject to sexual violence, including rape while being held in captivity." Hamas rejected the accusations.
Sinwar and Deif are believed to be hiding in Gaza. Haniyeh, the supreme leader of Hamas, is based in Qatar.
Israeli PM Netanyahu and Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant are accused of seven war crimes and crimes against humanity, including extermination and murder. They are also accused of starvation of civilians as a method of warfare, intentionally directing acts against a civilian population, persecution, and willfully causing great suffering.
Netanyahu and Gallant do not face any immediate risk of prosecution. Israel is not a member of the court, but the threat of arrest could make it difficult for Israeli leaders to travel abroad.
US President Joe Biden has strongly come out in support of Israel in response to the arrest warrants. "I will always ensure that Israel has everything it needs to defend itself against Hamas and all its enemies. We want Hamas to be defeated," he said.
President Bideon also mentioned his support for the civilians in Gaza but rejected the ICC's application wholeheartedly. "It’s heartbreaking but let me be clear, we reject the ICC’s application for arrest warrants against Israeli leaders. Whatever these warrants may imply, there’s no equivalence between Israel and Hamas. What’s happening is not genocide," he said.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by DNA staff and is published from PTI)
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