Israel's Channel 12 News reported that officials in Jerusalem think that the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague will issue arrest warrants as early as this week to some senior officials. The people include Prime Minister Benjamin Netaanyahu, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, and IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi.
It is being reported that diplomatic efforts to stop ICC Chief Prosecutor Karim Ahmad Khan from moving ahead with arrest warrants have failed.
The arrest warrants could be issued over the humanitarian crisis in Gaza. There are also accusations that Israel breached the Fourth Geneva Convention as it pertains to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War.
Israel has increased efforts to facilitate the delivery of aid to Gaza. A new land crossing has been opened that is designed to bring in foreign aid to Gaza. The Biden administration confirmed that the quantity of foreign aid entering the Gaza Strip has substantially increased.
The U.N.'s senior humanitarian and reconstruction coordinator for Gaza, Sigrid Kaag, told the Security Council last week that her team has had constructive cooperation from Israel. Officials in Jerusalem think that the ICC will decide in the coming weeks about the arrest warrants. The Israeli government is fighting the issuance of warrants on the diplomatic front through talks with the United States.
On April 16 an emergency meeting was held at Netanyahu's office. Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer, Justice Minister Yariv Levin, and Foreign Minister Israel Katz were present. They decided to take “urgent action with international authorities” to prevent the arrest of Israelis abroad.
Would any of this be happening without the nod of approval from the Biden administration? Those in the know say no. Khan is supported by Biden.
“The sources at The Hague said that it is impossible that the chief prosecutor would have decided on such a dramatic step, in a war that is still ongoing, with very little evidence, if he had not at least had a ‘green light’ from the Americans,” said Israeli journalist Amit Segal.
Khan has served in his position since February 2021, when he was elected with U.S. support.
He has closed two cases that “greatly troubled the Americans”—on undeclared detention related to Afghanistan in Europe and to war crimes allegedly committed in Afghanistan—Channel 12 noted.
Israel does not recognize ICC's jurisdiction over its military and political actions in the Gaza Strip. The Palestinian Authority declared its acceptance of ICC's jurisdiction in alleged crimes committed by Israel. Shocker, I know. It's a world against Israel kind of mindset. The United Nations and the ICC are notoriously anti-Israel institutions.
Netanyahu isn't having it. He shouldn't. Israel has gone out of its way to protect as many civilians as possible since Hamas started the war on October 7, 2023.
Netanyahu on Friday vowed to “never accept any attempt by the ICC to undermine” the Jewish state’s “inherent right of self-defense.”
“The threat to seize the soldiers and officials of the Middle East’s only democracy and the world’s only Jewish state is outrageous. We will not bow to it,” tweeted the premier.
“While the ICC will not affect Israel’s actions, it would set a dangerous precedent that threatens the soldiers and officials of all democracies fighting savage terrorism and wanton aggression,” the post concluded.
Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich has threatened to crush the Palestinian Authority financially if certain unilateral actions are brought against Israel in the international arena.
Israel distributes information to Gazans to tell them where to move to avoid action by the Israeli military. Hamas, though, uses facilities like schools and hospitals to store weapons and hide its operations. It uses women and children as human shields. The humanitarian crisis in Gaza was present before the war began. Hamas hijacks trucks transporting aid and denies its distribution to those who need it.
War is hell, horrible things happen. That is why people try to avoid it. In this case, Hamas started the war while a ceasefire with Israel was in effect. Hamas is a culture of death. Israel has a culture of life. There is no peace as long as Hamas is present. It is unthinkable that Biden and the Democrats do not have moral clarity at this time in history.
It is easy to think that Biden and other Democrats support the ICC. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer called for Israel to hold elections and replace Netanyahu during a time of war. Nancy Pelosi called for a halt to U.S. shipments of military aid, including weapons, to Israel. This is madness. The Hamas wing of the Democrat Party is alive and well, all because they want to hold on to the power they have and win elections in November, including the presidential election.
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