Saturday, November 23, 2024 - UK Prime Minister, Sir Keir Starmer has backed the International Criminal Court's decision to issue an arrest warrant for Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu.
This comes after the Hague-based court issued warrants for
Netanyahu and his former defence minister Yoav Gallant, as well as the leader
of Hamas.
Britain, along with 123 other members of the ICC, will now
be obliged to detain Netanyahu 'on sight' under international law.
A spokesperson for Downing Street said the
Government respected the court and refused to rule out he would be arrested if
he landed on British soil - comments which have been widely interpreted as
supportive of the decision.
He said: 'We respect the independence of the ICC.'
No10 added there was no 'moral equivalence' between the
democratically elected leader of Israel and terrorist leaders, and
that Israel has a right to defend itself.
The ICC warrant would, nevertheless, need to
be ratified by a UK court before it becomes valid, it is understood.
The warrants against Netanyahu and his former defense
minister Yoav Gallant focus on allegations Israel has used food as a weapon in
its campaign against Hamas in Gaza, a charge Israeli officials deny.
Experts have warned that hunger has become widespread across
Gaza and may have reached famine levels in the north of the territory, which is
under siege by Israeli troops.
The action by the International Criminal Court came as the
death toll from Israel's campaign in Gaza passed 44,000 people, according to
local health authorities, who say more than half of those killed were women and
children.
Netanyahu condemned the arrest warrant against him, saying
Israel 'rejects with disgust the absurd and false actions' by the court. In a
statement released by his office, he said: 'There is nothing more just than the
war that Israel has been waging in Gaza.'
The decision turns Netanyahu and the others into
internationally wanted suspects and could further isolate them, as well as
complicate efforts to negotiate a cease-fire.
'We are not going to get into hypotheticals. We remain
focused on pushing for an immediate ceasefire to bring an end to the
devastating violence,' the Prime Minister's official spokesman said when asked
if the UK would obey the warrant.
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