While war crimes such as genocide are legal designations that would normally be made by a judge, the charities’ accusations will do little to dispel the charges already brought against the government of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant against Netanyahu for crimes against humanity, along with Yoav Gallant, his former defense minister, as well as Hamas military chief Mohammed Deif. Israel said it killed Deif, the head of the Qassam Brigades in August.
Israel responded furiously to the warrants, with Netanyahu’s office branding the decision “antisemitic,” rejecting the charges as “absurd and false.” Oren Marmorstein, a spokesperson for Israel’s Foreign Affairs Ministry, told NBC News on Sunday that Israel had filed an appeal against the ICC warrants.
The war in Gaza has raged for 14 months and according to local officials, more than 45,000 people have since been killed in Israel’s military campaign there. Israeli forces entered Gaza in response to the Oct. 7, 2023, terrorist attack, in which around 1,200 people Israelis were killed and around 250 people were taken hostage, according to Israeli tallies.
Around 100 hostages are still being held by Hamas and other militant groups, although a third are thought to be dead.
While Israel has long justified the death toll and high levels of destruction in Gaza in the context of its war against the Iran-backed militia, there appears to be a limited response from Hamas in large parts of Gaza even as its campaign continues, according to Andreas Krieg, a senior lecturer at King’s College London’s school of security studies.
