Fri Nov 22 02:43:36 UTC 2024: ## Netanyahu Condemns ICC Arrest Warrant as “Modern-Day Dreyfus Affair”
**The Hague/Jerusalem** – Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vehemently denounced the International Criminal Court’s (ICC) issuance of an arrest warrant against him and former Defence Minister Yoav Gallant, likening the move to the infamous Dreyfus Affair of 1894. The ICC accuses both men of war crimes related to the ongoing Gaza conflict.
Netanyahu described the ICC’s decision as “anti-Semitic” and a “modern-day Dreyfus Affair,” referencing the wrongful conviction of a Jewish French army officer based on fabricated evidence. He rejected the accusations as “absurd and false,” accusing ICC Chief Prosecutor Karim Khan of corruption and attempting to deflect from allegations of sexual harassment against him. Khan has denied these allegations.
The ICC warrants, the first ever issued against an Israeli head of state, stem from the aftermath of Hamas’ October 7 attacks on Israel, which resulted in over 1,400 Israeli deaths and hundreds of kidnappings. Israel’s subsequent military response in Gaza has led to significant civilian casualties and widespread destruction.
Israeli President Isaac Herzog called the ICC’s move a “dark day for justice,” and Foreign Minister Gideon Saar declared the court had lost all legitimacy. However, the human rights group B’Tselem welcomed the warrants, urging international enforcement and asserting it’s a crucial step towards accountability for crimes committed in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The controversy underscores the deep divisions surrounding the conflict and the ICC’s role in addressing alleged war crimes.
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