Israel Gaza: Netanyahu ICC war crimes arrest warrant 'outrageous' says Biden

US President Joe Biden has described the arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court for the Israeli prime minister on war crime charges as "unacceptable."

The ICC has also released an arrest warrant for Yoav Gallant, the former defense minister of Benjamin Netanyahu, as well as for a Hamas leader, Mohammed Deif, who Israel claims was killed in July.

Judges indicated that there was sufficient evidence to suggest that the three men were "criminally responsible" for offenses committed during the conflict between Israel and Hamas.

Europe and the United States have taken different stances regarding the warrant, with various European nations affirming their support for the decisions made by the International Criminal Court (ICC). Meanwhile, the UK government expressed its acknowledgment of the court's autonomy.

"Regardless of what the ICC suggests, there is absolutely no comparison between Israel and Hamas," Biden stated in an external release. "Our support for Israel in the face of security threats will always remain unwavering."

Both Israel and Hamas dismiss the claims put forward by the International Criminal Court (ICC).

In a declaration made on Thursday, Netanyahu remarked, "The anti-Jewish ruling from the international court in The Hague resembles a contemporary version of the Dreyfus affair, and it will conclude in a similar fashion."

He was talking about a well-known incident of antisemitism that took place in France more than a hundred years ago.

"The Israeli Prime Minister stated that the court in The Hague is accusing us of intentionally employing a strategy of starvation."

"During this time, we have provided Gaza with 700,000 tons of food to nourish its residents. We have sent out millions of text messages, made numerous phone calls, and distributed leaflets to help the people of Gaza stay safe. Meanwhile, Hamas militants are actively working to keep the population in danger, even going so far as to shoot at them and use them as human shields."

Netanyahu stated that Israel would "not acknowledge the legitimacy" of the ICC's ruling.

Earlier this week, the United Nations issued a warning that Palestinians in certain areas of northern Gaza, which are under siege by Israeli forces, are experiencing increasingly dire living conditions. This is largely due to the fact that almost no aid has been provided for the past 40 days.

Gallant stated that the ICC equates "the nation of Israel with the violent leaders of Hamas, thereby justifying the killings of infants, the assault of women, and the kidnapping of elderly individuals from their homes."

Ehud Olmert, a former prime minister of Israel, expressed to the BBC that although he was critical of Netanyahu's approach to the situation with Hamas, he did not support the decision made by the International Criminal Court (ICC).

"Israel is not guilty of genocide or war crimes that warrant the accusations against the prime minister and the defense minister," Olmert stated during an interview on Radio 4's World Tonight program.

Hamas did not address the warrant for Deif specifically, but they stated that the actions taken against Netanyahu and Gallant represented a significant historical milestone and a rectification of a long-standing pattern of injustice faced by their community.

People in Gaza have voiced their optimism that Israeli leaders will finally face accountability for their actions.

Israel rejects the claim that its military is engaging in genocide in Gaza, a matter that is currently being addressed in a different case at the International Court of Justice.

The effect of the warrants issued by the ICC will rely on whether the court's 124 member countries—excluding Israel and its ally, the United States—choose to carry them out or not.

However, representatives from the EU, the UK, France, the Netherlands, and Italy have all expressed their support for the Court.

The case brought by the prosecutor against the three men originates from the events of October 7, 2023, when Hamas militants launched an attack on Israel, resulting in the deaths of approximately 1,200 individuals and the abduction of 251 others, who were taken to Gaza as hostages.

In response, Israel began a military operation aimed at dismantling Hamas. According to the health ministry controlled by Hamas in Gaza, the conflict has resulted in the deaths of over 44,000 individuals in the region.

In the case of Deif, a pre-trial chamber of the International Criminal Court identified sufficient evidence to suggest that he is liable for serious offenses. These include crimes against humanity such as murder, extermination, torture, and various forms of sexual violence, including rape. Additionally, he is implicated in war crimes that encompass murder, cruel treatment, torture, hostage-taking, acts that violate personal dignity, and sexual violence.

It further stated that there were valid reasons to think that the crimes against humanity were "part of a broad and organized effort led by Hamas and other armed factions targeting the civilian population in Israel."

The court determined that there are sufficient grounds to suspect that both Netanyahu and Gallant, who was removed from his position as defense minister earlier this month, share criminal responsibility. They are considered co-perpetrators for collaboratively committing various offenses, including the war crime of using starvation as a tactic in warfare, as well as the crimes against humanity of murder, persecution, and other brutal acts.

It also determined there were justifiable reasons to think that "each bears criminal responsibility as civilian leaders for the war crime of willfully targeting the civilian population."