ISRAELI OFFICIALS Are Increasingly Concerned That The International Criminal Court (ICC) Plans To Seek Arrest Warrants For Their Military And Political Leaders On War Crimes Charges.
Reports Indicate That Prime
Minister Benjamin Netanyahu May Be Among Them.
The ICC, Based In The
Hague, Has Been Investigating Israel's Actions In The Occupied Territories For
The Past Three Years And More Recently The Actions Of Hamas As Well.
It Has The Power To
Prosecute And Convict Individuals For The Most Serious Crimes Under
International Law.
It Previously Issued
Arrest Warrants For Leaders Including Russia's Vladimir Putin, Libya's Muammar
Gaddafi, And Ugandan Warlord Joseph Kony.
Mr Netanyahu Has Accused
The ICC Of Trying To Cripple Israel's Ability To Defend Itself.
Making Such Open Comments
To The Public Shows That, Behind The Scenes, The Situation Is Being Actively
Discussed.
Although The ICC Has Not
Confirmed Israel's Claims, When Chief Prosecutor Karim Khan KC Visited Israel And
The Occupied West Bank Last December His Message Was Clear.
A British Lawyer Visited
The Sites Of Hamas Attacks In Israeli Villages Near The Gaza Fence, Where Hamas-Led
Fighters Invaded On October 7.
He Also Met With
Political Leaders, And Traveled To Ramallah To Speak With Families Of Palestinian
Victims About Their Experiences In Gaza And The West Bank. He Condemned The
Violence Committed By Civilians On Both Sides, And Promised To Investigate.
"All Parties Must
Comply With International Humanitarian Law," He Explained In A Statement
At The Time. "If You Don't, Don't Complain When My Office Needs To
Work."
Mr. Khan Said The Oct. 7
Attacks, In Which Gunmen Led By Hamas Killed About 1,200 People, Mostly
Civilians, And Took 253 Hostages, According To Israeli Reports, Represented
"Some Of The Greatest International Crimes That Shock The Conscience Of
Humanity, Crimes That The ICC Was Established To Deal With".
In Israel's Case, His
Concerns Were Twofold. He Stressed The Obligation To Conduct His Military
Operation In Gaza According To "Clear Legal Criteria Governing Armed
Conflicts".
Israel Has Been Accused
Of Failing To Adequately Protect Civilians During Its Months-Long Bombing
Campaign, Although It Insists It Is Taking All Necessary Measures To Avoid
Casualties.
The Hamas-Run Health
Ministry In The Region Says More Than 34,500 People Have Been Killed There
Since The War Began, Many Of Them Children.