By Romana Rubeo 
The International Criminal Court (ICC) has issued arrest warrants for Benjamin Netanyahu and Yoav Gallant over war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in the Gaza Strip.
In a statement issued on Thursday, the ICC announced that it “issued warrants of arrest for two individuals, Mr Benjamin Netanyahu and Mr Yoav Gallant, for crimes against humanity and war crimes committed from at least 8 October 2023 until at least 20 May 2024, the day the Prosecution filed the applications for warrants of arrest.”
Their alleged war crimes include using starvation as a weapon of war and committing acts such as murder, persecution, and other inhumane acts.
The ICC emphasized that Israel’s acceptance of the court’s jurisdiction is not necessary and disclosed the arrest warrants in the interest of the victims.
ICC: The International Criminal Court has issued two arrest warrants against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Galant on charges of committing war crimes and crimes against humanity. pic.twitter.com/MbX8iIfOah
— The Palestine Chronicle (@PalestineChron) November 21, 2024
According to the statement, the Court found that “there are reasonable grounds to believe that both individuals intentionally and knowingly deprived the civilian population in Gaza of objects indispensable to their survival, including food, water, and medicine and medical supplies, as well as fuel and electricity, from at least 8 October 2023 to 20 May 2024.”
The Court also assessed that there are “reasonable grounds to believe” that Netanyahu and Gallant “bear criminal responsibility as civilian superiors for the war crime of intentionally directing attacks against the civilian population of Gaza”.
“In this regard, the Chamber found that the material provided by the Prosecution only allowed it to make findings on two incidents that qualified as attacks that were intentionally directed against civilians,” the statement added.
In addition to Netanyahu and Galant, the ICC also issued an arrest warrant for Mohammed al-Deif, commander of the Al-Qassam Brigades, Hamas’s military wing.
The court’s chief prosecutor, Karim Khan, initially requested the arrest warrants in May, arguing that Netanyahu and Gallant bore “criminal responsibility” for causing mass starvation in Gaza, which constitutes war crimes and crimes against humanity.
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Israel has dismissed the ICC’s jurisdiction and denied committing war crimes in Gaza.
The Israeli foreign ministry argued in September that the ICC lacked jurisdiction and failed to provide Israel with the opportunity to investigate the allegations before issuing the warrants.
Ongoing Genocide
Flouting a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire, Israel has faced international condemnation amid its continued brutal offensive on Gaza.
Currently on trial before the International Court of Justice for genocide against Palestinians, Israel has been waging a devastating war on Gaza since October 7.
According to Gaza’s Ministry of Health, 44,056 Palestinians have been killed, and 104,268 wounded in Israel’s ongoing genocide in Gaza starting on October 7, 2023.
Moreover, at least 11,000 people are unaccounted for, presumed dead under the rubble of their homes throughout the Strip.
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Israel says that 1,200 soldiers and civilians were killed during the Al-Aqsa Flood Operation on October 7. Israeli media published reports suggesting that many Israelis were killed on that day by ‘friendly fire’.
Palestinian and international organizations say that the majority of those killed and wounded are women and children.
The Israeli war has resulted in an acute famine, mostly in northern Gaza, resulting in the death of many Palestinians, mostly children.
The Israeli aggression has also resulted in the forceful displacement of nearly two million people from all over the Gaza Strip, with the vast majority of the displaced forced into the densely crowded southern city of Rafah near the border with Egypt – in what has become Palestine’s largest mass exodus since the 1948 Nakba.
Later in the war, hundreds of thousands of Palestinians began moving from the south to central Gaza in a constant search for safety.
(The Palestine Chronicle)
– Romana Rubeo is an Italian writer and the managing editor of The Palestine Chronicle. Her articles appeared in many online newspapers and academic journals. She holds a Master’s Degree in Foreign Languages and Literature and specializes in audio-visual and journalism translation.
