South Africa has welcomed International Criminal Court (ICC) arrest warrants issued for Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, former Minister of Defence Yoav Gallant, and Hamas leader, Mohammed Deif.
According to a statement from the ICC, the arrest warrants are for alleged war crimes relating to the war in Gaza.
Regarding Netanyahu and Gallant, the court ruled that there were reasonable grounds to believe the two bore criminal responsibility as co-perpetrators for “the war crime of starvation as a method of warfare; and the crimes against humanity of murder, persecution, and other inhumane acts.”
“The South African government welcomes the ICC’s recent warrants for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, former Minister of Defence Yoav Gallant, and Mohammed Deif of Hamas.
These actions mark a significant step towards justice for crimes against humanity and war crimes in Palestine.
South Africa reaffirms its commitment to international law and urges all state parties to act in accordance with their obligations in the Rome Statute.
We call on the global community to uphold the rule of law and ensure accountability for human rights violations,” said International Relations and Cooperation Department spokesperson, Chrispin Phiri.
Meanwhile, the court said it had found reasonable grounds to believe Deif was responsible for crimes against humanity and war crimes including murder, torture, rape, and hostage taking.
This is related to the Hamas attack on Israel on 7 October 2023 in which fighters killed more than 1 200 people, mostly Israeli civilians, and kidnapped 250.
In July, Israel claimed that it had killed Deif in an airstrike, but the court said it would continue with its investigations to confirm his death.
The court order compels all 124 members of the Rome Statute to arrest the three and hand them over to the court when they set foot in their countries.
