WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Chris Coons (D-Del.) issued the following statement after the International Criminal Court (ICC) announced today that it had issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, as well as several Hamas officials:
“I reject the International Criminal Court’s decision to issue arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant. As I said in May when the prosecutor requested these warrants, the ICC does not have jurisdiction to prosecute these cases against Israeli officials. I have continued to raise concerns about the Netanyahu government’s conduct in its legitimate war against Hamas, which threatens Israel’s existence. However, the prosecutor’s decision here is inappropriate, as Israel has an independent judiciary and the ability to hold its own officials accountable. While I have long supported the ICC’s mandate as a court of last resort to uphold international law, this decision and the process that led to it are fundamentally flawed, and these warrants should be widely opposed.”
Senator Coons is Chair of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on State and Foreign Operations (SFOPS) and a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.