Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu would not be automatically arrested if he arrived in the UK, a government minister revealed.
Middle East Minister Hamish Falconer was responding to an Urgent Question in the House of Commons yesterday about the International Criminal Court (ICC)’s decision to seek arrest warrants against Netanyahu, Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant and the leader of Hamas’s military wing Mohammed Deif – who is believed to have been killed by Israel.
Falconer said, “In line with this government’s stated commitment to the rule of law, we respect the independence of the ICC. We will comply with our international obligations.”
However, Falconer also said that: “There is a domestic legal process through our independent courts that determines whether to endorse an arrest warrant by the ICC in accordance with the International Criminal Court Act 2001. That process has never been tested, because the UK has never been visited by an ICC indictee.
If there were such a visit to the UK, there would be a court process, and due process would be followed in relation to those issues.”
Veteran Conservative MP Sir Bernard Jenkin pressed the government on this point and asked whether “the minister is committing himself to due process but not to arrest”.
Falconer replied by saying “There is a domestic legal process through our independent courts, and we cannot prejudge that process”.
He also alluded to a detailed letter by Shadow Attorney General Lord Wolfson, who wrote to Attorney General Lord Hermer to suggest that the UK could be in breach of international law should it seek to arrest Israel’s prime minister.
Wolfson argued that arresting the Israeli Minister could conflict with obligations to respect the immunity of a head of state that was not a member of the ICC.
My letter to the Attorney General seeking clarification of the Government’s position regarding enforcement in the UK of the ICC arrest warrant issued against Prime Minister Netanyahu of Israel. pic.twitter.com/YQJfq99rNv
— David Wolfson (@DXW_KC) November 25, 2024
The Middle East Minister said Hermer “will be writing back on the subject of those more detailed points”.
Shadow Foreign Secretary Priti Patel slammed the ICC’s decision which she said “will do nothing to help secure the release of those poor hostages, who have been held captive by Hamas for more than a year. It will not help to get more aid into Gaza, and it will not deliver a sustainable end to this awful conflict.”
She added that: “The only beneficiaries of this decision are Hamas and their terrorist sponsors, Iran, who are now celebrating this propaganda coup as a great victory for Hamas and Hezbollah”.
Several Labour MPs demanded the government take tougher action against Israel in light of the ICC’s decision.
Sheffield Central MP Abtisam Mohamed called on ministers to “now review all diplomatic, economic and political relations with Israel”.
York Central MP Rachael Maskell said the government should “escalate the UK’s response to the Israeli government by introducing sanctions so that they feel the real pain of our country but also understand that we want to ensure that justice is served by the ICC”.