Brussels (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell stated all EU nations must enforce ICC arrest warrants for Israeli leaders.
EU’s foreign policy chief Josep Borell said that the European Union governments cannot pick and choose whether to enforce arrest warrants issued by the International Criminal Court against two Israeli leaders and a Hamas commander.
How does the ICC warrant impact EU obligations?
The International Criminal Court (ICC) issued the warrants against Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu, his ex-defence minister Yoav Gallant and Hamas leader Ibrahim Al-Masri, for alleged offences against humanity. In their judgment, the ICC judges expressed there were reasonable grounds to consider Netanyahu and Gallant were criminally responsible for actions including murder, persecution and starvation as a weapon of war as part of a “widespread and systematic aggression against the civilian population of Gaza”.
All EU member nations are signatories to the ICC’s founding treaty, called the Rome Statute and several EU states have stated they will fulfil their commitments under the statute if required, but Hungarian PM Viktor Orban has invited Israel’s Netanyahu to visit his country, confirming him he would face no threats if he did so.
As reported by Reuter, EU top diplomat Josep Borell said:
“The states that signed the Rome convention are obliged to implement the decision of the court. It’s not optional.”
Those same responsibilities were also binding on countries aspiring to join the EU, he stated.
“It would be very funny that the newcomers have an obligation that current members don’t fulfil,”
he told Reuters.
How does Borrell defend criticism of Israeli government policies?
Moreover, Borell said
“Every time someone disagrees with the policy of one Israeli government – (they are) being accused of antisemitism. I have the right to criticise the decisions of the Israeli government, be it Mr. Netanyahu or someone else, without being accused of antisemitism. This is not acceptable. That’s enough.”
What are the humanitarian impacts of Gaza’s 13-month offensive?
On the other hand, Israel’s 13-month drive in Gaza has slain about 44,000 Palestinians and displaced nearly all the enclave’s residents while creating a humanitarian emergency, Gaza officials say. Israel started its offensive after the Hamas-led raid on Oct. 7, 2023, which killed 1,200 people in southern Israel, with more than 250 others taken hostage.
