The ICC has finally issued arrest warrants for Israeli leaders. The fight is far from over.
International Criminal Court
Craig Mokhiber writes in Mondoweiss on 21 November 2024:
Today, November 21, 2024, another brick in Israel’s Western-built wall of impunity has crumbled.
In a stunning decision rejecting all legal and jurisdictional challenges, defying Israeli threats, the harassment of Israel lobby trolls, and the obstruction of the U.S. government and Congress, the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued warrants for the arrest of two of Israel’s leaders.
Acting unanimously, the pre-trial chamber of the ICC issued warrants for the arrest of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, both charged with war crimes and crimes against humanity.
In doing so, the judges have given the world a glimmer of hope that the international legal system is not dead yet, that Israel is not above the law, that the abusive power of U.S. empire is not without challenge, and that justice may indeed be on the horizon. But if that justice is to prevail, all who believe in justice must remain vigilant.
The ICC warrants were issued after the longest delay in the Court’s history, during which Israeli and U.S. persecution of the court, slander of the Court by pro-Israel media and lobby proxies, and personnel shake-ups, were also unprecedented.
But the glare of global public attention, its demands for justice, and the principled convictions of the ICC judges prevailed, at least for now.
Rejecting legal challenges
While Israel was publicly smearing the court and working behind the scenes to obstruct justice, it also filed legal challenges to the ICC’s jurisdiction, claiming that the Court had no jurisdiction over the situation in Palestine or over Israeli nationals, since Israel had not consented to such jurisdiction. The Court rejected this claim out of hand, based on the “territorial jurisdiction of Palestine,” rooted in Palestine’s acceptance of the Court’s jurisdiction.