Germany on Wednesday threatened to arrest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu if he enters the country following war crimes charges brought by the International Criminal Court (ICC), a spokesperson confirmed.
A journalist in Berlin asked whether Germany would enforce the ICC arrest warrant. If issued Steffen Hebestreit, a spokesman for German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, said of the US accusations against Netanyahu and Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant: “Of course. Yes, we will abide by the law.” Politico reported.
If an ICC judge grants the requested warrant, 124 countries around the world, including all members of the European Union, will be obligated to arrest Netanyahu and Gallant on sight. This is the first time in the tribunal’s history that a sitting leader backed by a Western nation has been targeted in this way by an international tribunal.
As Breitbart News reported, Germany has previously wavered in its commitment to arresting Prime Minister Netanyahu.
Germany urges caution, but France expresses support for ICC arrest warrant against Israeli leaderhttps://t.co/DrBnnxqQ6c
—Breitbart London (@BreitbartLondon) May 21, 2024
The ICC’s former trial judges are considering an application by British prosecutor Karim Khan to charge two Israeli officials with “war crimes and crimes against humanity.”
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called the allegations a “distortion of reality” and accused prosecutors of “ruthlessly pouring gasoline on the fire of anti-Semitism raging around the world.”
Germany’s decision came after Ron Prosser, the Israeli ambassador to Berlin, directly petitioned the German government to reject the ICC’s proposed arrest warrant.
A protester holds a sign reading “Modern Hitler, stop this monster Sataniyahu!”, directed at Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, during a pro-Palestinian demonstration in Hamburg, Germany. (Markus Scholz/Photo Union via Getty Images)
A demonstrator holds a placard depicting the faces of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Nazi Germany leader Adolf Hitler during a rally in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza, Algiers, October 19, 2023. person. (AFP via Getty Images)
The Palestinian Authority has already declared that it accepts the International Criminal Court’s jurisdiction over crimes allegedly committed by the Jewish state, a claim rejected outright by other countries.
But Jerusalem does not recognize the court’s jurisdiction over IDF actions in the Gaza Strip, Judea and Samaria, JNS report.
‘Totally useless’: UK rejects international court arrest warrant for Netanyahuhttps://t.co/1LKWInvYOQ
—Breitbart London (@BreitbartLondon) May 21, 2024
The International Criminal Court was established in response to the extermination of six million Jews by Nazi Germany.
Germany has made large donations to the ICC.
Given the country’s history with the Hitlerite movement, there is speculation in German media and social media that the German government could arrest and deport Israeli prime ministers and defense ministers if they set foot on German soil. This caused shocking news. jerusalem post office Note.
