Chronicle Editor
Tendai Hildegarde Manzvanzvike, Zimpapers Politics Hub
THE Israeli-Palestinian conflict is costly. It has cost thousands of lives, mostly civilian lives, infrastructure and normalcy of life. However, recent developments could signal a major shift in relations among Western powers.
On May 20, the International Criminal Court (ICC) chief prosecutor Karim Khan dealt a heavy blow on the protagonists as he announced that they were applying for arrest warrants against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his Defence Minister Yoav Gallant.
Khan is also seeking to arrest some Hamas leaders: Yahya Sinwar, its leader in Gaza, Mohammed Deif, the commander of its Qassam Brigades military wing, and Ismail Haniyeh, the head of its political bureau.
“Let us today be clear on one core issue: if we do not demonstrate our willingness to apply the law equally, if it is seen as being applied selectively, we will be creating the conditions for its collapse . . . In doing so, we will be loosening the remaining bonds that hold us together, the stabilising connections between all communities and individuals, the safety net to which all victims look in times of suffering. This is the true risk we face in this moment,” said Khan in a statement.
Before the US and some of its allies expressed their rage with the ICC, threatening it in the process, Khan told CNN’s Christiane Amanpour that “a senior leader” had told him that the ICC “is built for Africa and for thugs like Putin”, and not for the West and its allies. Double standards at their best!
Although Africa is the ICC’s number one target, the continent continues to support Palestine, by voting for Palestine’s statehood, including its membership to the United Nations. Almost all of Africa’s member states have supported South Africa’s on-going case against Israel at the International Court of Justice at The Hague.
In 2018, Rwandese President Paul Kagame told Sudanese-British tycoon Mo Ibrahim: “The ICC was supposed to address the whole world, but it ended up covering only Africa . . . From the time of its inception, I said there was a fraud basis on which it was set up and how it was going to be used . . . I told people that this would be a court to try Africans, not people from across the world. And I don’t believe I have been proven wrong.”
As expected, Israel has reacted indignantly against the ICC’s intents. The Financial Times reports that an Israeli official said, “(The) ICC prosecutor’s baseless blood libel against Israel has crossed a red line in his lawfare efforts against the lone Jewish state and the only democracy in the Middle East . . . The blood libel will not deter Israel from defending itself and accomplishing all its just war objectives.”
Gallant posted on his X handle: “The attempt by prosecutor Karim Khan to deny the State of Israel the right to self-defence and to free its hostages must be rejected out of hand.”
Israel’s President Isaac Herzog also remarked, “Any attempt to draw parallels between these atrocious terrorists and a democratically elected government of Israel — working to fulfil its duty to defend and protect its citizens entirely in adherence to the principles of international law is outrageous and cannot be accepted by anyone”, even as foreign minister Israel Katz said he would “speak with foreign ministers of leading countries around the world to urge them to oppose the prosecutor’s decision and declare that even if warrants are issued, they do not intend to enforce them against Israeli leaders.”
The United States on the other has taken a bipartisan stance against the ICC’s intent, although that too stands on shaky ground. Some quarters are calling for the sanctioning and defunding of the ICC — something they did during Fatou Bensouda’s term, while others are in agreement with the ICC’s position.
Two Republican congressmen have gone as far as introducing the “Illegitimate Court Counteraction Act”.
President Biden was quick to respond: “Let me be clear. We reject the ICC’s application of arrest warrants against Israeli leaders. Whatever these warrants may imply, there is no equivalence between Israel and Hamas. And its clear Israel wants to do all it can to ensure civilian protection. But let me be clear, contrary to allegations against Israel made by the International Court of Justice, what’s happening is not genocide. We reject that. We will always stand with Israel and the threats against its security,” said President Biden.
House Speaker Mike Johnson on May 22 threatened the ICC, saying Congress shall push “aggressive” legislation to impose sanctions against the international court for pursuing an arrest warrant against Netanyahu.
“Congress is reviewing all options, including sanctions, to punish the ICC and ensure its leadership faces consequences if they proceed,” Johnson said in a statement.
While the court of public opinion shows support for Palestinians, it also looks like the US legislators are divided, with some members showing their willingness to have Netanyahu arrested if he sets foot on Capitol Hill. “If Netanyahu comes to address Congress, I would be more than glad to show the ICC the way to the House floor to issue that warrant,” Democratic representative Mark Pocan said in a statement.
Representative Ilhan Omar also weighed in calling for the ICC to be “allowed to conduct its work independently and without interference.”
Notwithstanding, Republican Senator Lindsey Graham voiced concerns that if the ICC was allowed to go ahead with its intentions against the Israeli leadership, the United States’ closest ally in the middle East, this would spell disaster for the US, as they would be the next in future.
“What I hope to happen is that we level sanctions against the ICC for this outrage . . . If they do this to Israel, we are next’,” bemoaned Graham.
Biden’s top diplomat Antony Blinken also criticised the move by the ICC, raising questions over the court’s jurisdiction as well as its process in making this application: “Fundamentally, this decision does nothing to help, and could jeopardise, ongoing efforts to reach a ceasefire agreement that would get hostages out and surge humanitarian assistance in.”
Is this putting a strain on the US-EU-UK relations? Will the alliance between the transatlantic countries survive?
Will NATO survive? So too the G7? Is this also the end of the unipolar world as new leaders like China, Russia and India emerge?
The New Arab argues that, “Israel’s Western partners may realise that they are at a crossroads, torn between supporting the rule of law or upholding their ties to Israel.”
Following the announcement by ICC, Germany has shown Secretary of State Blinken that when it comes to the Palestinian issue, it will not be business as usual. It promised that it will arrest Netanyahu if he sets foot in the EU member state. A spokesperson for German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, confirmed on Wednesday that the country would “abide by the law” and arrest the Israeli leader should he visit the EU nation.
This decision came after Israel’s Ambassador to Germany, Ron Prosor, made a desperate plea to the German government to reject the ICC’s proposed arrest warrant. Writing on his X handle on Tuesday, Prosor said: “This contrasts with the weak statements we hear from some institutions and political actors. The public statement that Israel has the right to self-defence loses credibility if our hands are tied as soon as we defend ourselves”.
France also supports the ICC decision seeking an arrest warrant against some of the Israeli and Hamas leaders.
France’s foreign ministry said in a statement, “Regarding Israel, France supports the International Criminal Court, its independence, and the fight against impunity in all situations.”
But an EU as well as ICC member, Hungary becomes the first country to announce: “Even if arrest warrants are issued against Netanyahu and Gallant — we will not honour them . . . This decision . . . is not a legal but a political decision, it is unacceptable and it discredits the International Criminal Court,” noted Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s chief of staff.
China looks on and says it hopes the ICC will maintain an “objective” position. “It is hoped that the ICC will uphold its objective and impartial position and exercise its powers in accordance with the law,” foreign ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said.
The ICC has also been criticised for issuing a warrant of arrest against Russian leader Vladmir Putin in 2023, following the ‘invasion’ of Ukraine. “This (warrant of arrest against Netanyahu) is the actual test of the ICC,” said Libya’s permanent representative to the UN, Ambassador El-Sonni. “Is the ICC politicised or is it independent and neutral?”
Against this backdrop was the biggest surprise of them all as Spain, Ireland and Norway announced that they would recognise a Palestinian state. What does it mean for the West’s double standards on some fundamental geo-political issues?
Finally, as Stephen Klinzer says, “Alliances and partnerships produce stability when they reflect realities and interests”. The sooner the West realises this, the better for humanity.
Online Reporter