Arrest warrants were issued for Netanyahu and Gallant over alleged war crimes in Gaza [GETTY]
Israel filed two appeals on Friday against the International Criminal Court’s (ICC)Â arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former defence minister Yoav Gallant, Israel’s Army Radio reported.
The appeals filed by Dr Gilad Noam from the Attorney General’s Office argue that the decision to issue the warrants had significant flaws.
The first appeal says chief ICC prosecutor Karim Khan should have provided a new notification of his investigation into the alleged war crimes. The appeal says Khan relied on a notification issued in 2021 of a probe the court initiated at the time.
The second appeal states that the ICC lacks jurisdiction over Israel as the state is not a member of the ICC – a claim the state has argued since the warrants were issued.
Oren Marmorstein, a spokesperson for Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, confirmed to NBC News that the warrants were filed.
The ICC issued the warrants for the Israeli officials on 21 November over alleged war crimes in Gaza after Khan requested the court to do so in May.
The decision theoretically limits the officials’ movement, as the court’s 124 national members would be obliged to arrest them should they enter their territory.
A warrant was also issued for Hamas’s armed wing’s military chief, Mohammed Deif, who Israel says is dead.
Israel’s war on Gaza has killed almost 45,000 Palestinians, with Netanyahu reluctant to stop the war, resulting in several ceasefire deals failing.
The state is also facing a genocide case at the International Court of Justice filed by South Africa.
The court ruled a ‘plausible’ risk that Israel’s war constitutes genocide in January.
