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Wong released a statement on social media platform X today, saying Australia respects the ICC’s role.
“Australia respects the independence of the (ICC) and its important role in upholding international law.
“We were clear that all parties to the conflict must comply with international humanitarian law.
“Civilians must be protected. Hostages must be freed. Fast, safe and unimpeded humanitarian aid must reach civilians. Humanitarian workers must be protected to enable them to work to save lives.”
Netanyahu condemned the arrest warrant against him, saying Israel “abhors absurd and false actions.”
In a statement released by his office, he said: “There is nothing more just than the war that Israel is waging in Gaza.”
Thursday’s decision makes Netanyahu and the others international wanted suspects and is likely to further isolate them and complicate efforts to negotiate a ceasefire to end the 13-month conflict.
Netanyahu and other Israeli leaders denounced ICC chief prosecutor Karim Khan’s request for a warrant as shameful and anti-Semitic.
US President Joe Biden also criticized the prosecutor and expressed support for Israel’s right to defend itself against Hamas. Hamas also vehemently rejected the request.
“The panel considered that there were reasonable grounds to believe that both individuals deliberately and knowingly deprived the civilian population of Gaza of facilities essential to their survival, including food, water, medicine and medical supplies, as well as fuel and electricity,” the three-judge court said. the panel wrote in its unanimous decision to issue warrants for Netanyahu and his former defense minister, Yoav Gallant.
The court also issued an arrest warrant for Mohammed Deif, one of the leaders of Hamas, for the October 2023 attacks that launched the Israeli offensive in Gaza.
The ICC’s chief prosecutor withdrew his request for warrants for two other senior Hamas figures, Yahya Sinwar and Ismail Haniyeh, after both were killed in the conflict.
Israel’s foreign ministry said in September it had filed two legal briefs challenging the ICC’s jurisdiction and claiming the court had not given Israel a chance to investigate the allegations on its own before seeking the warrants.
“The prosecutor has not treated any other democracy with an independent and respected legal system like the one that exists in Israel in this harmful way,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Oren Marmorstein wrote on X.
He said Israel remained “steadfast in its commitment to the rule of law and justice” and would continue to protect its citizens from militancy.
The ICC is a court of last resort that only prosecutes cases where domestic law enforcement authorities are unable or unwilling to investigate. Israel is not a member state of the court.
The country has struggled in the past to explore itself, rights groups say.
Despite the warrants, none of the suspects are likely to face judges in The Hague anytime soon. The court itself does not have a police force to enforce orders, but relies on the cooperation of its member states.
Even so, the threat of arrest could make it difficult for Netanyahu and Gallant to travel abroad, although Russian President Vladimir Putin, who is wanted on an ICC warrant for alleged war crimes in Ukraine, recently indicated he may still visit an ally when he travels to Mongolia , one of the member states of the court, and was not arrested.
Member states are required to detain suspects if a warrant is issued if they enter their soil, but the court has no mechanism to enforce its orders.
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