"The Chamber issued warrants of arrest for two individuals, Mr Benjamin Netanyahu and Mr Yoav Gallant, for crimes against humanity and war crimes committed from at least 8 October 2023 until at least 20 May 2024, the day the Prosecution filed the applications for warrants of arrest," the statement read.
The court rejected Israel's arguments on lack of jurisdiction over Netanyahu and Gallant arrest warrants .
"With regard to the crimes, the Chamber found reasonable grounds to believe that Mr Netanyahu, born on 21 October 1949, Prime Minister of Israel at the time of the relevant conduct, and Mr Gallant, born on 8 November 1958, Minister of Defence of Israel at the time of the alleged conduct, each bear criminal responsibility for the following crimes as co-perpetrators for committing the acts jointly with others: the war crime of starvation as a method of warfare; and the crimes against humanity of murder, persecution, and other inhumane acts. The Chamber also found reasonable grounds to believe that Mr Netanyahu and Mr Gallant each bear criminal responsibility as civilian superiors for the war crime of intentionally directing an attack against the civilian population," the statement said.
Harsh Rebuke
The office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused the International Criminal Court (ICC) of isolating Israel and supporting terrorism against the Jewish state, Netanyahu's adviser Dmitri Gendelman said.
Earlier in the day, the ICC has issued on Thursday arrest warrants for Netanyahu and former Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for alleged war crimes in Gaza.
"Today, the ICC has decided to ignore the evidence and arguments presented by Israel, actually taking the side of the regional war unleashed by the Iranian regime against Israel. The ICC has decided to support a campaign of total disinformation with antisemitic overtones, the purpose of which is to isolate Israel from its allies and facilitate terrorist attacks against our country," Gendelman said on Telegram.