U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) said: ‘The court is a dangerous joke. It is now time for the U.S. Senate to act and sanction this irresponsible body.’
The International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague has issued warrants for the arrest of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and its former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant.
The court has also issued a warrant for Hamas leader Mohammed Diab Ibrahim Al-Masri, who is sometimes known as Mohammed Deif.
The court said the warrants were for “crimes against humanity and war crimes committed from at least 8 October 2023 until at least 20 May 2024.”
The ICC said Netanyahu and Gallant bore criminal responsibility for “the war crime of starvation as a method of warfare, and the crimes against humanity of murder, persecution, and other inhumane acts.”
Netanyahu’s office issued a statement, saying, “Israel rejects with disgust the absurd and false actions leveled against it by ICC.”
Israeli President Isaac Herzog said, “The decision chose the side of terrorism and evil over democracy and freedom and turned the international justice system itself into a human shield for Hamas’ crimes against humanity.”
‘Dangerous Joke’
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) said: “The court is a dangerous joke. It is now time for the U.S. Senate to act and sanction this irresponsible body.”
Gallant was fired by Netanyahu earlier this month and replaced by Foreign Minister Israel Katz.
Hamas issued a statement saying, “We call on the International Criminal Court to expand the scope of accountability to all criminal occupation leaders.”
Senior Hamas official Basem Naim said, “This is an important step on the path to justice and bringing justice to the victims, but it remains a limited and spiritual step if it is not backed practically by all countries.”
The conflict in Gaza began after the terrorist group Hamas sent gunmen across the border into Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, massacred 1,200 people, and took 250 hostages.
Israel later sent troops into the Gaza Strip to destroy Hamas and rescue hostages, who had been taken into tunnels by the terrorists.
