The UK Labor government will comply with the decision of the International Criminal Court (ICC), which issued an arrest warrant for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Galant, if they arrive in the country, said a representative of the British government office. said Prime Minister Keir Starmer.
Earlier on Thursday, the ICC issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and Galant for alleged war crimes in the Gaza Strip. The court also rejected arguments from Israel, which sought to challenge the court’s jurisdiction to issue injunctions against its citizens. Israel also questioned the ICC’s jurisdiction to hear cases related to the situation in Palestine as a whole.
“The government will comply with its legal obligations,” – said the representative of the prime minister, quoted by the Times newspaper.
This decision was criticized by conservatives, who during their government opposed the ICC investigation and sought its termination. Shadow Foreign Secretary Priti Patel called on the Labor government to condemn and question the ICC decision.
In May, the ICC prosecutor Karim Khan announced that he would submit a request to the Pre-Trial Chamber for arrest warrants to be issued for Netanyahu and Galant. In a statement, he noted that they are responsible for war crimes and crimes against humanity that were committed during the current military campaign in the Gaza Strip, which began in October 2023.
