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The Hague: Europe and the Arabs
Following the announcement of the issuance of two arrest warrants against Netanyahu and Galant, a statement by the International Criminal Court in The Hague, the Netherlands, said that it had unanimously issued an arrest warrant against Mr. Mohammed Diab Ibrahim al-Masri, known as “Daif,” on charges of committing crimes against humanity and war crimes on the territory of Israel and the State of Palestine starting at least October 7, 2023.

The Prosecution had initially submitted requests for arrest warrants against two senior Hamas leaders, Mr. Ismail Haniyeh and Mr. Yahya Sinwar. Following confirmation of their deaths, the Chamber agreed to withdraw the requests on August 9, 2024 and October 25, 2024, respectively. With regard to Mr. Daif, the Prosecution indicated that it would continue to collect information regarding his reported death. On November 15, 2024, the Prosecution, referring to information from the Israeli and Palestinian authorities, informed the Chamber that it was not in a position to determine whether Mr. Daif had been killed or was still alive. Accordingly, the Chamber issued the current arrest warrant. The Prosecution also indicated that it continues to investigate crimes committed in the ongoing conflict and expects to submit further applications for arrest warrants. The arrest warrant issued against Mr. Daif was classified as “secret” in order to protect witnesses and preserve the course of the investigation. However, the Chamber has decided to release the information below, as it appears that conduct similar to that addressed in the arrest warrant is continuing, in particular the taking of a number of hostages. The Chamber considers that it is also in the interest of the victims and their families to be aware of the existence of the arrest warrant.
Today, on 21 November 2024, Pre-Trial Chamber I of the International Criminal Court unanimously issued two decisions rejecting the challenges submitted by the State of Israel (“Israel”) under Articles 18 and 19 of the Rome Statute (“Statute”). It also issued arrest warrants for Mr. Benjamin Netanyahu and Mr. Yoav Galant.

Decisions on the Applications of the State of Israel

The Chamber ruled on two applications submitted by Israel on 26 September 2024. In the first application, Israel challenged the Court’s jurisdiction over the situation in the State of Palestine in general, and over Israeli citizens more specifically, on the basis of Article 19.2) of the Statute. In the second application, Israel requested the Chamber to order the Prosecution to submit a new notification of the commencement of an investigation to its authorities under Article 18(1) of the Statute. Israel also requested the Chamber to discontinue any proceedings before the Court in the relevant situation, including the consideration of the applications for the issuance of arrest warrants against Mr. Benjamin Netanyahu and Mr. Yoav Galant, presented by the prosecution on May 20, 2024