Israel and the ICC… always impunity | News

International calls to prosecute Israel and its prime minister are growing Benjamin Netanyahu exist international criminal courthas committed various crimes against the residents of the Gaza Strip, but has been immune from prosecution due to pressure exerted by Israel.

On November 17, the International Criminal Court announced that five member states had submitted requests to investigate Israel’s attack on Gaza: South Africa, Bolivia, Bangladesh, Comoros and Djibouti.

This is not the first time in recent years that the ICC has received a request to investigate crimes committed by Israel, especially since Palestine joined the ICC in 2015, meaning crimes committed in the Gaza Strip, the West Bank and East Jerusalem. The crime will be investigated. has been brought under the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court.

But ironically, despite having all the information the ICC has against Israel for its crimes in the recent war in Gaza, the court has not condemned Israel or issued any arrest warrants for any Israeli officials.

Although the International Criminal Court has not requested an arrest warrant for the Russian president Vladimir Putin Just two weeks ago, the court’s 39 member states submitted a request to investigate crimes committed in Ukraine.

This has left many wondering why Israel has always been allowed to get away with it and not been tried on charges of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity, for which there are audio and video recordings, witness records and sometimes confessions from perpetrators.

legal loopholes

Palestinian accession to the Court is the first step towards formally bringing Israel to justice for its crimes against the Palestinian people. Although hundreds of lawsuits had been filed with the ICC before 2015 over Israeli crimes in Palestine, all of them were rejected.

One of the main reasons for rejection is lack of jurisdiction or the fact that the number of victims does not reach the level of genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes or crimes of aggression within the jurisdiction of the court.

Under the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, the bodies with the power to investigate such crimes are member states, the United Nations Security Council and the International Criminal Prosecutor.

However, the ICC’s investigation into the allegations against Israel and its political and military leaders was not officially launched until 2021, meaning it took six years to collect and analyze information before launching the investigation.

Israeli pressure

Israel’s failure to join the International Criminal Court, its failure to recognize the Palestinian state and its refusal to cooperate with its criminal investigators have all hindered the investigation.

Israel has also accused the ICC of “anti-Semitism”, as is its custom when dealing with any criticism of its practices, and has incited several member states, led by Germany and Japan, to halt or reduce funding for the ICC.

While former ICC prosecutor Fatou Bensouda defended the slow issuance of indictments, the Israeli judicial system already prescribes punishment for those accused of war crimes, meaning the ICC may not have jurisdiction Israeli violations.

Israel Judgment

Other members of the ICC are also unlikely to join the five countries in requesting an investigation into the Israeli attack, such as Colombia, whose president Gustavo Petro has announced his country’s support for the Algerian president’s call. Abdul Majid TebbouneProsecution against Israel at the International Criminal Court.

Hundreds of lawyers and human rights organizations around the world, led by the famous French lawyer Gilles Dufour, filed a lawsuit with the International Criminal Prosecutor on November 9, demanding an investigation into the crimes of the Gaza occupation.

The Second Turkish Lawyers Federation has announced its intention to lodge a judicial complaint with the International Criminal Court over Israeli crimes in Palestine.

These international and popular pressures will speed up the trial of the Israeli leader, but it still conflicts with the hardline stance of the United States and its European allies as members of the court, although Ireland and Belgium support holding Tel Aviv accountable.