JERUSALEM (dpa-AFX) - The United States has denounced applications by the International Criminal Court to issue arrest warrants for top Israeli leaders.
President Joe Biden termed the move as 'outrageous.' 'Whatever this prosecutor might imply, there is no equivalence - none - between Israel and Hamas. We will always stand with Israel against threats to its security,' he said in a statement.
'The United States fundamentally rejects the announcement today from the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) that he is applying for arrest warrants for senior Israeli officials, together with warrants for Hamas terrorists,' Secretary of State Antony Blinken said.
He said Washington rejects the Prosecutor's equivalence of Israel with Hamas. 'Hamas is a brutal terrorist organization that carried out the worst massacre of Jews since the Holocaust and is still holding dozens of innocent people hostage, including Americans.'
The International Criminal Court on Monday sought arrest warrants for the leaders of Hamas and Israel for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity linked to the war in Gaza.
In a statement, ICC Prosecutor Karim Khan said that there were reasonable grounds to believe that Yahya Sinwar, the Hamas leader in Gaza; Mohammed Deif, the commander of the Qassam Brigades, its military wing; and Ismail Haniyeh, head of the Hamas political bureau, 'bear criminal responsibility' for murder, extermination and taking hostages' for the Gaza terrorist outfit's deadly attacks in southern Israel on October 7 and holding foreigners hostage.
There are also reasonable grounds to believe that Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant are responsible for other crimes and crimes against humanity committed on the territory of the State of Palestine, he added.
To complement the allegations, Prosecutor Khan, a British national, noted that his Office had interviewed victims and survivors of the Hamas-led terror attacks in Israel.
On the issue of the liability of Netanyahu and Gallant, the ICC Prosecutor alleged 'starvation as a method of war.'
This and other crimes against humanity were allegedly committed 'as part of a widespread and systematic attack against the Palestinian civilian population pursuant to State policy.'
The decision over whether to issue arrest warrants will be taken by the Pre-Trial Chambers, which must also confirm the alleged charges.
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