The Arrest Warrants Against Israeli Criminals Restore Some Credibility to the International System and Its Judicial Frameworks

The First Pre-Trial Chamber of the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued two arrest warrants on November 21, 2024, against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his Defense Minister Yoav Gallant. They are charged with committing crimes against humanity, including murder, persecution, and other inhumane acts, as well as war crimes, such as using starvation as a method of warfare. These decisions were made unanimously by the court›s 18 judges. Additionally, the court issued two unanimous rulings rejecting requests submitted by Israel on September 26, 2024. The first challenged the ICC’s jurisdiction over the situation in the State of Palestine and its applicability to Israeli citizens, while the second sought to suspend proceedings concerning arrest warrant requests.
In January 2024, Mexico and Chile referred the situation in Palestine to the ICC Prosecutor, requesting an investigation into potential crimes under its jurisdiction. This was followed by submissions from several countries and human rights organizations accusing Israel of committing war crimes, crimes against humanity, and acts of genocide. In mid-May of the same year, the ICC Prosecutor requested the First Pre-Trial Chamber to issue arrest warrants related to the situation in the State of Palestine. This development triggered significant pressure from some Western countries on the ICC judges to influence judicial processes and prevent the issuance of arrest warrants against Israeli officials. Israel, meanwhile, was reassured by Western promises that no such warrants would be issued.
However, given Israel’s failure to investigate war crimes committed by its forces in Gaza and the West Bank, and as the crime of genocide in Gaza became a global public issue due to widespread demonstrations across world cities demanding an end to the killing of the Palestinian people, the ICC judges—bound by their legal oaths—had no option but to issue arrest warrants. This decision was based on available evidence, documents, and data, particularly as the ICC Prosecutor had previously attempted to visit Israeli settlements near Gaza but was barred from entering the area, in what appeared to be an Israeli effort to obstruct the ICC’s work.
Although the ICC has issued arrest warrants in the past, the arrest warrants for Netanyahu and Gallant have garnered significant attention worldwide due to the growing international importance of the Palestinian cause and the extensive protection provided to Israel and its leaders by Western nations. These leaders have long avoided accountability before international justice despite committing numerous crimes against the Palestinian people in particular and the Arab peoples in general. This marks the first time in the history of international justice and the Palestinian-Israeli conflict that arrest warrants have been issued against Israeli officials—a historic precedent that all countries, including those not signatories to the Rome Statute, should respect and implement. The warrants represent not only a victory for Palestine and the families of the martyrs who fell in the ongoing genocide perpetrated by the Israeli army in Gaza and the West Bank but also a victory for justice, international law, and humanity’s values.
The significance of these warrants lies in their targeting of Israeli officials at the pinnacle of the state’s fascist hierarchy, demonstrating that «Israel as a state,» through all its institutions, is responsible for crimes committed against the Palestinian people in Gaza and the West Bank. This carries several implications:
First: It is clear that these arrest warrants will spark debates in some countries, despite the high professionalism demonstrated by the ICC judges, who hail from states that are allies of Israel. This reflects the double standards and political hypocrisy in addressing similar issues, particularly when compared to the widespread approval by the same countries for the arrest warrant issued against the Russian president.
Second: Mere declarations of respect and commitment to ICC decisions by the international community, particularly Western states, are insufficient. These must be accompanied by punitive measures against the occupying state, similar to sanctions imposed on other nations, which targeted government institutions and individuals linked to official authorities.
Third: Countries supplying weapons to Israel must halt such support. Germany, for instance, explicitly stated that its stance on arms deliveries to Israel remains unchanged following the ICC›s decision, raising the need for increased pressure on arms-supplying states and companies. This issue extends to military companies and civilian institutions that provide equipment used by the Israeli army for military purposes.
Fourth: International organizations, especially UN agencies and regional bodies, must refuse to allow Netanyahu and Gallant to address their platforms or participate in any political discussions or forums. Civil, health, educational, and cultural organizations worldwide should sever all relations with Israel and its institutions, reassessing these ties to avoid supporting a state now pursued by the highest international court for war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Regardless of the fate of these warrants, they remain an indelible mark of shame for Netanyahu and his supporters, even in death. The warrants restore some credibility to international judicial and legal systems, which had eroded due to their failure to hold Israel accountable for defying international will to the extent of enacting laws labeling UN organizations, such as the UNRWA, as terrorist entities. This places the world at a crossroads, testing the credibility of systems established post-World War II to ensure global security and stability.
While there is much speculation about the ICC›s motives behind issuing these arrest warrants, it is undeniable that the court’s move would not have been possible without the sacrifices and steadfastness of the Palestinian people in Gaza, the West Bank, and Jerusalem. This is a definitive indictment of the fascist nature of the occupation state, led by Netanyahu and his coalition partners, the pillars of contemporary fascism (Ben-Gvir and Smotrich).
These arrest warrants target the apex of Israel’s criminal hierarchy, but this hierarchy rests on a broad base. It is therefore imperative for the ICC to expand its pursuit of other war criminals within the occupying state, including ministers, officers, and security officials whose responsibilities for the crimes against the Palestinian people are no less significant than those of Netanyahu and Gallant.
If Israel is confident in its claims of innocence and compliance with international law, it should allow the accused to stand trial and present their evidence. However, Israel’s frantic appeals for immediate support from the United States and Western allies indicate that it has little to present in its defense, resorting instead to repeated accusations of antisemitism and other tactics designed to divert attention from its crimes against the Palestinian people.
The Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine’s External Relations Department welcomes the ICC’s issuance of arrest warrants against the Israeli Prime Minister and Defense Minister. We consider this step the beginning of a long journey of tireless struggle involving all advocates of freedom, democracy, and international law, including both general and humanitarian law, to uphold the principle of «no impunity,» which has historically allowed the Israeli army to continue its crimes since 1948. Failure to hold perpetrators accountable would amount to complicity by international political, legal, and judicial frameworks in these crimes.
We simultaneously condemn the U.S. administration’s stance against the ICC, its judges, and rulings. This position reveals the true intentions of the United States, which seeks to undermine the international system and its institutions—such as the United Nations, the International Court of Justice, the ICC, and other agencies—replacing them with a U.S.-dominated global order based on militarized relationships and alliances, in direct opposition to the principles of democracy and the rights of peoples to live in peace and security on their land while developing their economies and resources.
The international community must defend its institutions and confront U.S. policies, thwarting its plans in favor of a multipolar world order that respects cultural diversity and the rights of nations to choose political systems that serve their interests.
We call on all states, signatories and non-signatories to the Rome Statute, to support the ICC as a tool of international justice, shielding it from Western and U.S. pressures aimed at paralyzing its role or obstructing the execution of arrest warrants for Netanyahu, Gallant, and others proven to have committed war crimes against the Palestinian people. Popular movements, political parties, and unions worldwide are urged to intensify their efforts to pressure states hostile to international law, advocating for justice and accountability while cutting all ties with Israeli war criminals.