'No One Will Stop US': Israeli PM Netanyahu Denounces ICC'S Bid to Arrest Him Over Gaza War

Tel Aviv: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday strongly condemned the International Criminal Court's prosecutor for seeking arrest warrants for him alongside other Israeli leaders over alleged 'war crimes' in the ongoing Gaza conflict.

Posting a video on his social media handle X, Netanyahu called the arrest bids "outrageous" and rejected it with disgust stating that "democratic Israel" has been compared to what he called "mass murderers."

"The outrageous decision by the ICC prosecutor, Karim Khan, to seek arrest warrants against the democratically elected leaders of Israel is a moral outrage of historic proportions," the post read.

"It will cast an everlasting mark of shame on the international court," it read further.

A similar response was asserted by Netanyahu last month when he said that Israel “will never accept any attempt by the ICC to undermine its inherent right of self-defence." He said that while the ICC won't affect Israel’s actions, it would "set a dangerous precedent."

What is ICC and Why It Wants to Arrest Leaders?

Established in 2002 as the permanent court, the ICC is of 124 member states signed on to the Rome Statute. The ICC becomes involved when nations are unable or unwilling to prosecute crimes on their territory.

In the case of the ongoing conflict in Gaza, the ICC issued arrest warrants for Israeli and Hamas leaders, including Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, more than seven months into the war between the two sides, based on a request by the court’s chief prosecutor, Karim Khan, who believes that Netanyahu, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and three Hamas leaders — Yehia Sinwar, Mohammed Deif and Ismail Haniyeh — are responsible for war crimes and crimes against humanity in the Gaza Strip and Israel.

'US Stands With Israel Against Threats:' Prez Biden

Netanyahu's comments echo the United States President Joe Biden who condemned the International Court's arrest arrest warrant for the Israeli Prime Minister.

In a statement, President Biden said, "The ICC prosecutor's application for arrest warrants against Israeli leaders is outrageous. And let me be clear: Whatever this prosecutor might imply, there is no equivalence -- none -- between Israel and Hamas."

He further added that the “US will always stand with Israel against threats to its security.”

Who Else Did the ICC Charge Earlier?

Last year, the World Court issued a warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin on charges of responsibility for the abductions of children from Ukraine. Russia responded by issuing its own arrest warrants for Khan and ICC judges.

Other high-profile leaders charged by the court include ousted Sudanese strongman Omar al-Bashir on allegations including genocide in his country’s Darfur region. Former Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi was captured and killed by rebels shortly after the ICC issued a warrant for his arrest on charges linked to the brutal suppression of anti-government protests in 2011.

(Inputs from AP)