Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attends a wreath-laying ceremony marking Holocaust Remembrance Day in Jerusalem.

The International Criminal Court's prosecutor said on Monday he had requested arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, his defence chief and three Hamas leaders over alleged war crimes.

Here are some reactions to the announcement:

ISRAELI PRESIDENT ISAAC HERZOG:

"Any attempt to draw parallels between these atrocious terrorists and a democratically elected government of Israel - working to fulfil its duty to defend and protect its citizens entirely in adherence to the principles of international law – is outrageous and cannot be accepted by anyone."

ISRAELI FOREIGN MINISTER ISRAEL KATZ:

"I intend to speak with foreign ministers of leading countries around the world to urge them to oppose the prosecutor's decision and declare that even if warrants are issued, they do not intend to enforce them against Israeli leaders."

PALESTINIAN MILITANT GROUP HAMAS STATEMENT:

"Hamas strongly denounces the attempts of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court to equate the victim with the executioner by issuing arrest warrants against a number of Palestinian resistance leaders.

"Hamas...demands the cancellation of all arrest warrants issued against leaders of the Palestinian resistance, for violating U.N. conventions and resolutions."

SPOKESPERSON FOR BRITISH PRIME MINISTER RISHI SUNAK:

"This action is not helpful in relation to reaching a pause in the fighting, getting hostages out or getting humanitarian aid in."

BENNY GANTZ, ISRAELI WAR CABINET MINISTER:

"Drawing parallels between the leaders of a democratic country determined to defend itself from despicable terror to leaders of a blood-thirsty terror organisation (Hamas) is a deep distortion of justice and blatant moral bankruptcy."

AUSTRIAN CHANCELLOR KARL NEHAMMER:

"We fully respect the independence of the ICC. The fact however that the leader of the terrorist organisation Hamas whose declared goal is the extinction of the State of Israel is being mentioned at the same time as the democratically elected representatives of that very State is non-comprehensible."

SENATOR JIM RISCH, SENIOR REPUBLICAN ON THE U.S. SENATE FOREIGN RELATIONS COMMITTEE:

"There is no cause for why the court should be investigating Israel as it is not a party to the Rome Statute and Israel has a fully functional judiciary."

ISRAELI FINANCE MINISTER BEZALEL SMOTRICH:

The decision to seek arrest warrants for Netanyahu and Gallant is a "show of hypocrisy and Jew-hatred".

"Arrest warrants against them are arrest warrants against us all."

WASEL ABU YOUSSEF, MEMBER OF THE PALESTINE LIBERATION ORGANIZATION (PLO) EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE:

"The Palestinian people have the right to defend themselves... The ICC is required to issue arrest warrants against Israeli officials who are pursuing crimes of genocide in the Gaza Strip."

SAMI ABU ZUHRI, SENIOR HAMAS OFFICIAL:

The decision "equates the victim with the executioner" and encourages Israel to continue its "war of extermination" in Gaza.

REED BRODY, WAR CRIMES PROSECUTOR:

"Many thought this request would never come. ... Israeli leaders are finally facing a legal reckoning for their actions. Top Hamas officials likewise face justice for the cruel and inhuman taking of hostages and other crimes against humanity.

ICC warrants if approved would make Netanyahu a wanted man, in the same category as (Russian President Vladimir) Putin and Omar al-Bashir of Sudan."

CZECH PRIME MINISTER PETR FIALA:

"The ICC Chief Prosecutor's proposal to issue an arrest warrant for the representatives of a democratically elected government together with the leaders of an Islamist terrorist organisation is appalling and completely unacceptable.

"We must not forget that it was Hamas that attacked Israel in October and killed, injured and kidnapped thousands of innocent people. It was this completely unprovoked terrorist attack that led to the current war in Gaza and the suffering of civilians in Gaza, Israel and Lebanon."

HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH:

"Victims of serious abuses in Israel and Palestine have faced a wall of impunity for decades. This principled first step by the prosecutor opens the door to those responsible for the atrocities committed in recent months to answer for their actions at a fair trial. ICC member countries should stand ready to resolutely protect the ICC's independence as hostile pressure is likely to increase while the ICC judges consider (prosecutor Karim) Khan's request."

Get AfriPrime Android Web View app....Click the link to Amazon app store to download https://rb.gy/3xek46

Biden says ICC move on arrest warrants for Israeli leaders "outrageous"

U.S. President Joe Biden meets Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Tel Aviv

 U.S. President Joe Biden on Monday slammed the International Criminal Court prosecutor's application for arrest warrants for senior Israeli officials including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, calling the move "outrageous".

"And let me be clear: whatever this prosecutor might imply, there is no equivalence - none - between Israel and Hamas. We will always stand with Israel against threats to its security." Biden said in a statement.

His top aide Secretary of State Antony Blinken also criticized the move, raising questions over the court's jurisdiction as well as its process in making this application. He added that it could jeopardize negotiations to achieve a hostage deal and a ceasefire.

"Fundamentally, this decision does nothing to help, and could jeopardize, ongoing efforts to reach a ceasefire agreement that would get hostages out and surge humanitarian assistance in," Blinken said.

ICC prosecutor Karim Khan said he had requested arrest warrants for Netanyahu, his defence chief and three Hamas leaders over alleged war crimes.

Khan said in a statement issued after over seven months of war in Gaza that he had reasonable grounds to believe that the five men "bear criminal responsibility" for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity.

Blinken said Israel was prepared to cooperate with the court and that the prosecutor was scheduled to visit Israel as early as next week, but instead he went on a cable television to announce the charges.

"These and other circumstances call into question the legitimacy and credibility of this investigation," Blinken said.

In 2020, U.S. President Donald Trump's administration accused the ICC of infringing on U.S. national sovereignty when it authorized an investigation into war crimes committed in Afghanistan. The U.S. targeted court staff, including then-prosecutor Fatou Bensouda, with asset freezes and travel bans.

Biden's administration lifted those sanctions in April 2021.

Get AfriPrime Android Web View app....Click the link to Amazon app store to download https://rb.gy/3xek46

Graham rips ‘outrageous’ ICC prosecutor request for Israel arrest warrants

Graham rips ‘outrageous’ ICC prosecutor request for Israel arrest warrants

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) on Monday ripped what he called the “outrageous decision” of the International Criminal Court’s (ICC) prosecutor to seek arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity.

“This outrageous decision is truly a slap in the face to the independent judiciary of Israel, which is renowned for their independence,” Graham said in a statement, vowing to push for sanctions against the ICC.

“We must not forget as a nation the International Criminal Court threatened to bring action against American forces in Afghanistan – and we are a non-member,” he said.

“I will feverishly work with colleagues on both sides of the aisle in both chambers to levy damning sanctions against the ICC,” he added.

The prosecutor, Karim Khan, said he believes Netanyahu, Gallant and three Hamas officials are responsible for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza and Israel.

Gaza health officials estimate more than 35,000 Palestinians have died since the Israeli invasion of Gaza, which was in response to attacks by Hamas militants on Israeli soldiers and civilians on Oct. 7, which killed more than 1,000 Israelis.

Graham said that Khan’s team of prosecutors had told him and other senators that it would first conduct a lengthy investigation before bringing charges.

“Prosecutor Khan’s team was supposed to be in Israel today to arrange a meeting for next week with the prosecutor’s office about the allegations. I was told by ICC staff that the investigation would likely take months and not weeks, and that there would be meaningful consultation with the State of Israel,” Graham said.

But the ICC prosecutors instead announced the arrest warrants.

“I feel that I was lied to and that my colleagues were lied to. Prosecutor Khan is drunk with self-importance and has done a lot of damage to the peace process and to the ability to find a way forward,” Graham said.

Get AfriPrime Android Web View app....Click the link to Amazon app store to download https://rb.gy/3xek46