The Wall Street Journal reported overnight that the chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague, Karim Khan, had been preparing to request international arrest warrants for two Israeli ministers, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, shortly before he was placed on involuntary leave due to allegations of serious misconduct.
According to the report, Khan had planned to pursue the warrants over the ministers’ alleged roles in the expansion of Israeli settlements in Yehuda and Shomron.
With Khan now suspended amid claims of abusive behavior towards subordinates, the decision regarding the proposed arrest warrants has been transferred to his deputies. It remains unclear whether they will move forward with the initiative.
The development comes as Israel formally petitioned the ICC to cancel recently announced arrest warrants against Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant. Israel’s request argued that the court lacks jurisdiction to adjudicate matters related to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, citing Israel’s non-membership in the Rome Statute.
Adding further controversy, the request to halt the warrants against Netanyahu and Gallant included a detailed rebuttal of the ICC’s authority and raised serious concerns about Khan’s conduct. According to recent media reports, the prosecutor is accused of violently assaulting staff members under his command and attempting to suppress publication of these allegations, allegedly to avoid undermining the court’s case concerning Gaza.
{Matzav.com}