ICC rejects Israel’s appeal against Netanyahu and Gallant's arrest warrants

On October 17, the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague rejected Israel’s latest bid to appeal the arrest warrants issued for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defence Minister Yoav Gallant over alleged war crimes in Gaza, according to foreign media reports.

The warrants, first issued in November, were based on the court’s finding of “reasonable grounds” to believe that Netanyahu and Gallant bore “criminal responsibility” for war crimes and crimes against humanity.

At the same time, the ICC issued and later dropped warrants for three top leaders of the Palestinian militant group Hamas following their deaths.

The Israeli government and the United States reacted angrily to the warrants. Netanyahu denounced them as an “anti-Semitic decision,” while US President Joe Biden called them “outrageous.” In response, the US has imposed sanctions on senior ICC officials.

Israel initially requested the dismissal of the warrants in May while challenging the court’s jurisdiction over the case. The ICC rejected that request on July 16, ruling there was “no legal basis” to quash the warrants while the jurisdiction issue remained pending. A week later, Israel sought permission to appeal that decision. On Friday, the court ruled that Israel’s request did not constitute an appealable issue, stating: "The Chamber therefore rejects the request."

The ruling, spanning 13 pages, leaves the original warrants in force. ICC judges are still considering Israel’s broader challenge to the court’s jurisdiction. Previously, when the arrest warrants were issued, the ICC had rejected Israel’s jurisdictional appeal. However, in April, the Appeals Chamber ruled that the Pre-Trial Chamber had erred in dismissing the challenge and instructed a more detailed review of Israel’s arguments.

It remains unclear when the ICC will issue a ruling on the jurisdiction question.

By Tamilla Hasanova