US President Joe Biden He rejected accusations against the Israeli leadership of committing genocide against the Palestinians in its fight against Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
“Contrary to the allegations of the International Court of Justice against Israel, this is not genocide,” Biden said on Monday (local time) in the Rose Garden of the White House during a celebration of the achievements of American Jews in the United States. “We reject that. We stand with Israel.” The US government expressed. The request to issue an arrest warrant against the Israeli leadership is “outrageous.”
South Africa has repeatedly called on the International Court of Justice to take action against Israel, accusing it of committing genocide. UN judges took emergency resolutions demanding that Israel do everything in its power to prevent genocide and allow humanitarian aid.
Joe Biden speaks in the Rose Garden of the White House on Jewish American Heritage Month
Source: AFP/Almond Ngan
The ICC prosecutor on Monday also requested an arrest warrant for crimes against humanity against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Galant. Arrest warrants were also issued against the leader of the Islamic Hamas movement in the Gaza Strip, Juhya Al-Sinwar, and other representatives of the Hamas movement.
Biden reiterated that the US government rejects the actions of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court. The American President said: There is no equality between Israel and Hamas.
Biden also indirectly addressed the issue of the detention of an American ammunition shipment due to Israel’s actions in the city of Rafah in the Gaza Strip, saying: „Let me be clear: I will always ensure that Israel has everything it needs to protect itself to defend against it.” Hamas and all other enemies.”
Biden also stressed that “my commitment to the security of the Jewish people and the security of Israel and its right to exist as an independent Jewish state is unwavering.” The US government continues to call for a two-state solution that is safe and lasting and brings peace.
Netanyahu calls the accusations “ridiculous”
He expressed his opinion in a similar statement US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken Monday. The fact that arrest warrants have been requested for high-ranking Israeli officials alongside arrest warrants for Hamas terrorists is “shameful.” Blinken said: “We reject the public prosecutor’s link between Israel and Hamas.” He added, „Hamas is a brutal terrorist organization that committed the worst massacre against Jews since the Holocaust and is still holding dozens of innocent people hostage, including Americans.”
Blinken also made clear that the US government believes the court, which is not recognized by the United States, has no jurisdiction in the case. The US Secretary of State stressed that although Israel is not a member of the International Criminal Court, it is ready to cooperate with the prosecution. But “troubling procedural issues” called into question the legitimacy and credibility of the investigation. Blinken also stated that the Attorney General’s actions could jeopardize ongoing efforts to reach a ceasefire agreement.
Karim Khan, Prosecutor of the International Criminal CourtHe had previously requested the issuance of arrest warrants against Netanyahu, Galant, and Hamas leaders Jiya Sinwar, Muhammad Deif, and Ismail Haniyeh. He said on Monday that he believes they are all responsible for war crimes and crimes against humanity in the Gaza Strip and Israel in connection with the Gaza war that has been ongoing for more than seven months.
Israel strongly criticized these requests. Head of government Netanyahu He called it ridiculous and accused the prosecution of anti-Semitism. He said: “As the Prime Minister of Israel, I reject with disgust the prosecutor in The Hague’s comparison between democratic Israel and the mass murder committed by Hamas.” “No pressure or decision in any international forum will prevent us from meeting those who want to destroy us.” Netanyahu stressed that Israel will continue the war against Hamas.
Foreign Minister Israel Katz On Monday, he spoke of the “scandalous decision.” This represents a „direct and unrestrained attack on the victims of October 7 and our 128 hostages in Gaza.” “While Hamas murderers and rapists commit crimes against humanity against our brothers and sisters, the prosecutor mentions our crimes at the same time.” Katz said, according to what was reported from his office: “The minister and the Minister of Defense next to the vile Nazi monsters of Hamas – a historical shame that will remain in the memory forever.”
He ordered the immediate establishment of a follow-up center in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, where specialists would fight the decision, whose main goal was to “tie the hands of the State of Israel and deprive it of the right to self-defense.” He wanted to talk to the foreign ministers of the major countries so that they could object to the Attorney General’s decision „and declare that even in the case of arrest warrants, they will not implement them against the leaders of the State of Israel.”
Israeli President Isaac Herzog rejected the request, calling it “more than just outrageous.” Herzog said that any attempt to compare Hamas terrorists with Israel’s democratically elected government cannot be accepted. Herzog said: “We will not forget who started this war and who raped, slaughtered, burned, mistreated and kidnapped innocent citizens and families,” referring to the Gaza war. He added: „We expect all leaders of the free world to firmly condemn and reject this move.”
„A crime of historical proportions”
Benny GantzThe former army chief and current member of the war cabinet strongly criticized Khan’s announcement, saying Israel operates with „one of the strictest ethical rules” and has a strong judiciary capable of investigating itself. After the massacre committed by Hamas, Israel is fighting „one of the just wars in modern history.” “The prosecutor’s position in seeking arrest warrants is in itself a crime of historic proportions that will be remembered for generations to come,” Gantz said.
The opposition in Israel also condemned the proposal. Opposition leader Jair Lapid spoke of a „complete moral failure.” “We cannot accept the outrageous comparison between Netanyahu and Sinwar, between the leaders of Israel and the leaders of Hamas,” the former prime minister wrote on the X website.
Opposition politician Merav Michaeli He described Khan’s decision as „a scandal that the State of Israel cannot and will not accept.” The Israeli leadership „cannot be placed in the same category as a vicious and cruel terrorist organization.” Meanwhile, the leader of the Social Democratic Action Party said that Israel has reached a dangerous and unprecedented level under Netanyahu’s leadership. She added: „It is dangerous for Israeli national security, and for ensuring the existence of the State of Israel.” She demanded: “Netanyahu’s destructive farce must end immediately.”
For its part, Hamas criticized the Public Prosecutor’s request to issue arrest warrants against its leaders. A statement broadcast by the Hamas movement’s Al-Aqsa satellite channel said, „His decision compares the victim to an executioner and encourages the occupation to continue its war of genocide.” The terrorist organization criticized the fact that only two arrest warrants were requested against Israeli politicians.
