Netanyahu Calls ICC Arrest Warrant a "Anti-Semitic Measure"

The International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants on the 21st (local time) for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Galant. Prime Minister Netanyahu condemned the move as an "anti-Semitic measure."

According to the Times of Israel on the same day, Netanyahu said in a video speech, "The purpose of this action is to obstruct our natural right to defend ourselves against enemies who seek to destroy us."

Benjamin Netanyahu, Prime Minister of Israel. Photo by Yonhap News

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He also criticized the ICC for taking no action regarding the 101 Israeli hostages held by the Palestinian armed faction Hamas, saying, "They only issued an arrest warrant for the body of Muhammad Deif."

The ICC prosecutor requested warrants in May for three Hamas leaders, including Deif, on charges of launching a surprise attack on Israel. Although the Israeli military announced that they had killed these individuals, Hamas has not officially confirmed Deif's death.

He stated, "No absurd decision against Israel will prevent us from continuing to protect our country," adding, "We will not succumb to pressure."

Former Minister Galant, who was also issued an arrest warrant alongside Netanyahu, reacted on social media platform X (formerly Twitter), saying, "With this decision, the ICC equated the murderous leaders of Israel and Hamas, justifying the killing of infants, sexual assault of women, and abduction of the elderly."

On the same day, the ICC issued arrest warrants for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Minister Galant on charges of war crimes. In principle, Netanyahu and Galant could be arrested if they visit any of the ICC's 124 member countries. However, the likelihood of actual arrest is low. There is no clear method to sanction member countries that fail to enforce the warrants. For example, Russian President Vladimir Putin is also wanted by the ICC for war crimes in Ukraine, but when he visited Mongolia, an ICC member country, last September, he was instead welcomed.

The United States, a non-member of the ICC and an ally of Israel, expressed concern over "procedural errors that led to this decision" and "fundamentally rejects" the ICC's issuance of the arrest warrants.

Reactions among ICC member countries are also divided. Josep Borrell, the European Union (EU) High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, stated regarding the issuance of the arrest warrants, "All countries, including all EU member states, have an obligation to implement this court decision," emphasizing, "This is a court decision, not a political one, and it must be respected."

However, Christophe Lemoyne, spokesperson for the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs, while expressing a principled stance to follow ICC regulations, avoided commenting on the actual arrest of Prime Minister Netanyahu, saying, "It is a legally complex issue, so I will not comment today."

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