Benjamin Netanyahu Is Wanted for Crimes Against Humanity
The International Criminal Court has issued arrest warrants for Benjamin Netanyahu and his former defense minister Yoav Gallant. The hostile response to the warrants from Israel’s Western allies is a calculated assault on international law.
Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaking during a press conference in Tel Aviv on July 13, 2024. (Nir Elias / AFP via Getty Images)
The International Criminal Court (ICC) recently issued warrants for the arrest of Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former defense minister, Yoav Gallant. The Israeli leaders are accused of a litany of war crimes and crimes against humanity over the past year. For Palestinians, the arrest warrants were a rare moment of hope, but the Biden administration responded with outrage, while Republican senator Tom Cotton threatened to invade the Netherlands if necessary to help Netanyahu and Gallant escape justice.
Countries like Britain, France, and Germany that have signed up to the ICC, unlike the United States, have been looking for excuses to avoid carrying out the arrest warrants if Netanyahu and Gallant set foot on their territory. John Reynolds, professor of law at Maynooth University, spoke to us about the ICC warrants and explained why there is a binding obligation on all ICC member states to carry them out. This is an edited transcript from Jacobin Radio’s Long Reads podcast. You can listen to the interview here.
Daniel Finn
Why was there a time lag of six months between the initial request from Karim Khan for these warrants and the point when they were actually issued? How does that compare with the time frame for some previous cases, notably the warrant for the arrest of Vladimir Putin over the invasion of Ukraine?
John Reynolds
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