ICC should request Interpol red notices against Netanyahu and Gallant, says rights group

The decision to issue the arrest warrants for the two Israeli officials is, said the AOHR, a first step towards eliminating the impunity that politicians and military leaders in the occupation state have enjoyed for decades due to the unlimited support of the US and other countries in Europe and elsewhere.
“The move is also a rebuttal of the leaders, politicians and media personalities around the world who defend Israel without question and provide it with full support on the grounds that it is merely exercising its right to ‘self-defence’ in Gaza.” Today, the AOHR pointed out, most have announced that they will fulfil their obligations under international law, except for the US, which is not a member of the International Criminal Court and has condemned the warrants.
The Office of the ICC Prosecutor, it added, is now free to deal more quickly with the ongoing crimes committed by the occupation forces in the Gaza Strip, as the list of leaders, officers and soldiers participating in the genocide of the Palestinians is long. “There are also many other files with the prosecutor that must be dealt with since Palestine was subjected to the court’s jurisdiction in June 2014. Many Israeli politicians and army officers have committed crimes that fall within the court’s jurisdiction and they must be prosecuted quickly.”
The most important and obvious file covers the illegal settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories, the organisation explained. “The presence of Israeli settlers threatens Palestinian existence more than ever now that Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich has announced that he is preparing to impose Israeli sovereignty over the West Bank.”
According to the human rights group, the slow procedures and hesitation in dealing with the files presented to the Office of the ICC Prosecutor since June 2014 have encouraged Israeli leaders to commit the most serious crimes, as they felt immune to any prosecution. “Following the issuance of the two warrants, hopefully this should be the start of a new era in which more arrest warrants will be issued to maximise the deterrence of the occupation leaders and stop their crimes, especially the ongoing genocide in Gaza.”
The AOHR UK also called on all countries that have provided support to the occupation for more than a year of genocide in the Gaza Strip, including members of the International Criminal Court, to stop this support in all its forms and devote their efforts to stopping the war of genocide through practical and decisive measures.
The organisation ended by stressing the need to provide financial support to the ICC to be able to assign sufficient personnel to deal with the accumulated files. “It is also necessary to support the court employees and provide them with protection in light of the unprecedented threats they have been exposed to, including US bullying which aims to undermine the work of the court and use it as a tool to serve its political agendas.”
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