Germany considers arrest warrant for Israeli Prime Minister from International Criminal Court

According to RT , Germany is still considering whether to comply with its commitments to the International Criminal Court (ICC) regarding the arrest of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The arrest warrant for the Israeli leader is not yet an urgent issue for Berlin, because Mr. Netanyahu has no plans to visit Germany in the near future.

Commenting on the ICC arrest warrant, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said Berlin has an obligation to comply with German, European and international law.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at a joint press conference in Berlin in March 2023. (Photo: Sean Gallup)

According to Ms. Baerbock, Germany is still considering whether the arrest warrant for the Israeli Prime Minister is consistent with its legal basis as well as international practice.

On November 21, the ICC issued a wanted notice for Mr. Netanyahu and several leaders of the Hamas movement for war crimes and crimes against humanity in the conflict in Gaza.

Israel and some of its allies, including the United States, have condemned the ICC's arrest warrant. However, many Western countries have said they will comply with the ICC's arrest warrant.

Germany is one of several countries that have signed the Rome Statute and recognized the ICC's jurisdiction, but Chancellor Olaf Scholz's spokesman said Berlin was unlikely to comply with the arrest warrant due to its "historical responsibility" towards Israel.

"On the one hand, we take the ICC ruling very seriously, on the other hand we also have a historical responsibility towards Israel," German government spokesman Steffen Hebestreit said, adding: "It is difficult to imagine Germany proceeding with an arrest warrant for Mr. Netanyahu in Berlin based on current legal grounds."

Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu last visited Germany in March 2023 and government politicians have stressed that "no other state visit is scheduled to take place in the near future".

There are currently 123 countries that are party to the Rome Statute. If Prime Minister Netanyahu and Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant were to visit one of these countries, they would both risk arrest.

A White House National Security Council spokesman said the United States rejected the ICC's decision and was deeply concerned about the "troubling flaws in the process" that led to the arrest warrant for Mr Netanyahu.

The European Union (EU) representative also announced that it will respect the ICC's decision regarding the arrest of the Israeli leader. So far, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Ireland, Italy, Sweden, Belgium and Norway have announced that they will comply with the ICC's order.

France considers the arrest warrant to be legal but said arresting the Israeli leader would be "legally complicated".

Britain also said it would "comply with its legal obligations" to the ICC but pointed out that domestic procedures relating to ICC arrest warrants had never been used by London, as no one wanted by the ICC had ever visited the country.

Tra Khanh (Source: russian.rt.com)

Source: https://vtcnews.vn/duc-xem-xet-lenh-bat-giu-thu-tuong-israel-cua-toa-an-hinh-su-quoc-te-ar909204.html