International Criminal Court warns of ‘threats of retaliation’

THE HAGUE, May 3 — Prosecutors at the International Criminal Court today warned against “individuals threatening reprisals” against the tribunal or its staff, saying such actions could constitute a “violation against the administration of justice.”

Advertisement

Advertisement

The ICC did not say whether the comment referred to its investigation into possible war crimes by Israel or Palestinian groups in Gaza and the West Bank.

US media said this week that the ICC could issue an arrest warrant against Israeli officials including Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu, and that the latter had urged US President Joe Biden to prevent the court from doing so.

Today, the Hague-based office of ICC Chief Prosecutor Karim Khan said on

“However, that independence and impartiality are undermined when individuals threaten to retaliate against the court or court staff” if it “takes decisions” on investigations that fall within its mandate, the court said.

“Such threats, even if unheeded, may constitute a violation of the ICC’s “administration of justice,” the report said.

“The Bureau urges that all attempts to obstruct, intimidate, or improperly influence its officials cease immediately.”

Khan’s office declined to answer questions from AFP about where the threats of retaliation might come from.

It also declined to comment on whether it was referring to its investigation into Israel and the war in Gaza.

The ICC opened an investigation into Israel in 2021, as well as Hamas and other armed Palestinian groups, for possible war crimes in the occupied Palestinian territories.

Khan has said that this investigation is now “extending to include the escalation of hostilities and violence since the (Hamas) attacks that took place on October 7, 2023.”

The New York Times has quoted Israeli officials as saying that Israeli Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu could be among those charged by the court.

The ICC was also considering charges against Hamas leaders, the newspaper reported.

A series of Israeli officials have said in recent days that any attempt by the court to take any action against Israel would be “outrageous.”

Netanyahu said on Wednesday on X that the ICC is “considering issuing arrest warrants against senior Israeli government and military officials as war criminals.”

“This would be a disgrace of historic proportions,” he said, claiming the ICC was “trying to put Israel in the dock.”

The United States said Monday it also opposes the ICC investigation into Israel’s conduct in Gaza.

The ICC is the world’s only independent court established to investigate the most serious crimes committed by individual suspects, including genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity.

It has previously issued arrest warrants for national leaders – most recently Russian President Vladimir Putin – over the invasion of Ukraine.

The war in Gaza began after Hamas’ attack on southern Israel on October 7 resulted in the deaths of 1,170 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of Israeli official figures.

Israel’s brutal retaliatory offensive has killed at least 34,568 people in Gaza, mostly women and children, according to the Health Ministry in the besieged Hamas-run enclave. —AFP