Israeli leaders worried about arrest warrants issued by criminal courts

Israeli leaders are worried that the International Criminal Court might order them to be arrested because many people around the world are upset about the fighting in Gaza. Air attacks happened last night and killed 22 people in a city in the south, according to the hospital’s records.

Nine women and five children were killed in Rafah. One of the children was just 5 days old, according to the records and a reporter from the Associated Press. Israel wants to attack the city but the United States and others say it would be a disaster for the million Palestinians living there.

Recently, Israeli officials have talked about an investigation by the ICC that started three years ago. The investigation is looking into whether there were war crimes during the 2014 Israel-Hamas war. The probe is also investigating Israel building settlements in land that belongs to Palestinians, and that Palestinians want for their own country in the future.

The court did not make a comment on Monday and has not said if warrants in the case will happen soon.

Israel’s Foreign Ministry said on Sunday that they told Israeli missions about rumors that warrants might be issued against important political and military leaders. Israel’s Foreign Minister, Katz, stated that if any warrants were issued, it would make Hamas and other militant groups feel encouraged and hopeful.

Prime Minister Netanyahu said Israel will not allow the ICC to weaken its right to defend itself.

“The danger of capturing the soldiers and leaders of the only democratic country in the Middle East and the only Jewish nation in the world is shocking. ” He wrote on platform X that we won’t give in to it.

Israel was not sure what caused their worries. Israel recently said they will allow more help to go into Gaza. This may be to stop any possible action from the ICC.

ICC prosecutor Karim Khan said during a visit to the region in December that the investigation is progressing quickly and carefully, and they are making sure to base their actions on solid evidence rather than emotions.

Israel and the United States don’t agree with the ICC’s authority, but Israeli officials could still be arrested in other countries if warrants are issued. They would also show disapproval of what Israel is doing, especially when many college campuses in the US are having protests in support of Palestinians.

The International Court of Justice is looking into whether Israel has done very bad things in the current war in Gaza. It might take a long time for them to make a decision. Israel said they didn’t do anything wrong and they think the international courts are unfair.

Israel says that Hamas started the war by attacking them on October 7, and they are accusing Hamas of committing genocide. Terrorists attacked army bases and farms in southern Israel, and killed about 1,200 people, most of them were not soldiers, and they also took about 250 people as hostages.

Israel started a big attack on land, air, and sea, and it has killed more than 34,000 Palestinians, many of them are women and children, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry. The Ministry doesn’t separate between people who are fighting and people who are not.

Israel says that many innocent people have died because Hamas fighters are hiding in places where a lot of people live. The military says it has stopped a lot of bad guys, but they haven’t shown any proof.

The fighting made 80% of the 2. 3 million people in Gaza leave their homes. Many towns and cities were destroyed, and northern Gaza is almost out of food.

Israel promised to send its troops into Rafah, where more than 1 million Palestinians are hiding from the fighting in other places. Israel says that Rafah is the final place where Hamas has control, and that there are many fighters there.

The President of the United States, Joe Biden, and his team have been helping Israel with military and political support for their attack. They have asked Israel to not invade Rafah because it could cause a big humanitarian problem. President Biden talked about these worries in a phone call with the leader of Israel, Netanyahu, on Sunday.

Nine women and five children, one of them only 5 days old, were killed in Rafah, according to the records and a reporter from the Associated Press. Israel wants to attack the city, but its best friend, the United States, and other countries have said no many times. They think attacking the city would be really bad for the more than a million Palestinians who live there.

Antony Blinken, the Secretary of State, is going to visit Israel on his trip to the region. He started his trip in Saudi Arabia on Monday. He said Israel should do more to let aid into Gaza. But the best way to help the people there is for both sides to agree to stop fighting.

The US, Egypt, and Qatar are trying to make Israel and Hamas agree to a deal they made. This deal would release some hostages and stop the fighting for a while. It is thought that Hamas still has about 100 hostages and the bodies of 30 other people. Some were released last year in exchange for Palestinian prisoners.

Hamas said it won’t let the rest of the hostages go unless there’s a deal to stop the war. Netanyahu said no to the demand. He wants Israel to keep attacking until Hamas is gone and all the hostages come back.

At a meeting in Saudi Arabia’s capital city, Riyadh, Blinken asked Hamas to agree to a very generous offer from Israel. “He said that the people of Gaza can only have peace if Hamas agrees to stop fighting. “