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23-11-2024
GAZA/ WASHINGTON/ THE HAGUE: The State of Palestine has welcomed the International Criminal Court’s issuing of arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defence Minister Yoav Gallant over suspected war crimes in Gaza, saying the move “restores hope” in international law.
Dozens have been killed in strikes by Israel’s army in northern Gaza’s Beit Lahiya and Gaza City, while Israeli attack helicopters fired missiles at tents sheltering displaced people in the central area of the Palestinian territory.
Lebanon’s Ministry of Public Health said Israeli attacks on the Baalbek region have killed at least 40 people and wounded 52 others. The raids follow after the ministry reported 25 people killed and 121 injured in Israeli attacks over the previous 24 hours.
Israel’s genocide in Gaza has killed at least 44,056 Palestinians and wounded 104,286 since October 7, 2023. An estimated 1,139 people were killed in Israel during the Hamas-led attacks that day, and more than 200 were taken captive.
In Lebanon, at least 3,583 people have been killed and 15,244 wounded in Israeli attacks since the war on Gaza began.
However, we’ve been hearing really the same message across the US State Department, the Defense Department, the White House, pretty much saying the same thing: that this court really doesn’t have the right to take up this case.
It’s important to remember that whenever the United States has had a chance to say that anything Israel is doing is going against US law such as blocking humanitarian aid or committing war crimes, the US has defended Israel nonstop throughout the entire course of this war.
We are hearing a lot of senators say that they need to sanction the officials at the court but what would that actually mean?
Well, not a whole lot.
This happened to two officials at the ICC under the previous Trump administration. Basically, if they have property in the US, they can’t sell it. If they want to do business with any US entities, banks or companies or people, they can’t. So, it’s very limited but the question is, how far is the incoming Trump administration willing to go? Are they willing to sanction allies who contribute to the ICC? There are a lot of different levers of power that the US president has.
How far either of them are willing to take it remains to be seen.
Israel’s former Defence Minister Yoav Gallant also released a statement saying that he was actually proud of the privilege he had in leading Israel’s security and defence systems during a time of war.
It’s important to mention that some of Gallant’s own comments were used against him in this ICC case.
Shortly after the war began, Gallant had said that there would be a “full siege on Gaza”, meaning no food, no water, no fuel, no electricity, and saying that Israel was fighting “human animals”.
Gallant also went on to say that Israel will continue this war until all of the objectives are met and Netanyahu had said the same thing that until Israel accomplishes all of its military goals for this war, the fighting will continue.
Israeli fighter jets bombed a tent housing displaced Palestinians in the al-Mawasi area of southern Gaza, killing a woman and her daughter, media reported.
Two people have also been killed and several others injured following an Israeli air strike on a house in the city of Deir el-Balah in central Gaza, according media. (Int’l News Desk)
