An Israeli protester wearing a hat with a slogan against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu looks on during an anti-government demonstration in the Israeli coastal city of Tel Aviv on April 27, 2024. (Credit: Jack Guez/AFP)
Israel's Channel 12 News reported Sunday that arrest warrants by the ICC for senior Israeli officials, including Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, are expected as early as this week, as rumors swirl within the Israeli government and media circuit.
The Jewish News Syndicate, while reporting that diplomatic efforts to thwart the ICC's hypothetical move had "failed," also quoted influential Israeli journalist Amit Segal as saying that his sources at The Hague would consider such a move by the chief prosecutor impossible without having "at least had a ‘green light’ from the Americans."
The Jerusalem Post echoed this framing reporting that in light of the growing concern of international intervention, Netanyahu posted on X on Friday that, "Under my leadership, Israel will never accept any attempt by the ICC to undermine its inherent right of self-defense.”
“The threat to seize the soldiers and officials of the Middle East’s only democracy and the world’s only Jewish state is outrageous. We will not bow to it,” he stated.
As a judicial institution, the ICC does not have its own police force or enforcement body, so, when issuing arrest warrants, it relies on cooperation with the international community, particularly for transferring arrested persons to the ICC detention center in The Hague, freezing suspects' assets, and enforcing sentences, the ICC website explains.
Over the last few days, Israel media have reported on efforts being taken by the Israeli government to prevent arrests, something that started to worry Israeli officials following the ICC arrest warrant issued for Russian President Vladimir Putin last month.
According to Professor Eliav Lieblich, an expert in international law at Tel Aviv University who spoke with Haaretz, Putin's warrant “heightens the risk for Israel’s leadership."
“On a legal level, the court made it clear that it doesn't think that heads of non-member states have personal immunity in front of the ICC.”
Israel's Channel 13 reported that on April 24, the Israeli National Security Council held a secret session to discuss the possibility of these warrants, and decided to launch a diplomatic pressure campaign and "activate Israel's international tools," according to a report on the Middle East Monitor.
“Based on the information and indicators available to senior officials in Israel, there is a possibility that the International Criminal Court in The Hague will issue arrest warrants against Netanyahu, Gallant, and Halevi,” the Channel 13 report said.