Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused the International Criminal Court (ICC) of being anti-Semitic after it issued arrest warrants against him and former Defense Minister Yoav Galant for alleged crimes against humanity and war crimes.
Netanyahu compared the ICC decision to the Dreyfus affair, saying, “The International Criminal Court’s anti-Semitic decision can be compared to a modern-day Dreyfus trial — and it will end the same way.”
The warrants, announced in The Hague, cite alleged offenses committed from October 8, 2023 to May 20, 2024.
Netanyahu defended Israel’s military campaign in Gaza, which was launched after the October 7 attack by Hamas, and dismissed the ICC proceedings as baseless allegations.
He questioned the integrity of the ICC’s chief prosecutor, Karim Khan, and suggested that the warrants were issued to divert attention from allegations of harassment against Khan.
Meanwhile, Yoav Galant condemned the warrants, calling them a “dangerous precedent” that equates Israel’s actions with Hamas terrorism. “The decision … legalizes the killing of children, the rape of women and the kidnapping of the elderly,” Gallant wrote on X.
The United States rejected the ICC ruling, citing jurisdictional concerns, while the EU considered the warrant “binding”.
In response to the verdict, Amnesty International urged ICC member states to arrest the accusers, labeling Netanyahu a “wanted man”. Meanwhile, Hamas welcomed the decision as a step towards justice, while Turkey called for action against Israel’s alleged war crimes.
