The Chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court is seeking arrest warrants for the arrest of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Hamas’s leader in Gaza, Yahya Sinwar.
Karim Khan is also seeking the arrest warrants of Hamas leaders Ismail Haniyeh, Mohammed al-Masri, and Israeli defence minister Yoav Gallant.
Khan said the court had “reasonable grounds to believe” the men bear responsibility for war crimes and crimes against humanity
In the Hamas: case, the alleged crimes began from at least, the 7th of October 2023 while Israel’s case was stated as beginning from at least, the 8th of October 2023
Israel’s foreign ministry has called Khan’s decision a “historical disgrace while a senior Hamas official is also critical of the pronouncement; saying it “equates the victim with the executioner”
In his reaction, President Joe Biden described the decision as “outrageous”, while Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Washington “fundamentally rejects” the move
A panel of pre-trial judges will now determine whether the evidence supports the issuing of arrest warrants