NICOSIA: The EU’s foreign policy chief said on Saturday that the arrest warrants issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC) against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and others are binding.
Speaking at a workshop of Israeli and Palestinian peace activists in Cypris, Josep Borrell said that European Union governments cannot pick and choose whether to execute arrest warrants issued by the International Criminal Court against two Israeli leaders and a Hamas commander.
“The members, the states who signed the Rome Convention are obliged to implement the decision of the court,” said Josep Borrell in a video shared by Yahoo News.
The ICC issued the warrants on Thursday against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former defence minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes against humanity in Gaza. The ICC also issued warrants against Hamas leader Ibrahim Al-Masri.
All EU member states are signatories to the ICC’s founding treaty, called the Rome Statute.
“The states that signed the Rome convention are obliged to implement the decision of the court. It’s not optional,” the EU’s top diplomat said.
Those same obligations were also binding on candidate countries aspiring to become member of the EU, he said adding among the conditions they have to fulfil is to be a member of the International Court.
“It would be very funny that the newcomers have an obligation that current members don’t fulfil,” he told Reuters.
“Every time someone disagrees with the policy of one Israeli government – (they are) being accused of antisemitism,” said Borrell, whose term as EU foreign policy chief ends this month.
“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.”
At least 44,176 Palestinians, mostly women and children, have been killed in the Israel’s war since October 7, 2023, Gaza Health Ministry, which the United Nations considers reliable, said.
The Israeli’s 13-month campaign in Gaza has displaced nearly all the enclave’s population while creating a humanitarian crisis.
Earlier today, US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin said that the United States was dedicated to a diplomatic resolution in Lebanon and urged Israel to improve the “dire” conditions in Gaza.
Israel began its offensive after the Hamas-led attack on Oct. 7, 2023, which killed 1,200 people in southern Israel, with more than 250 others taken hostage, Israel has said.
