The International Criminal Court (ICC) confirmed that it has issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defence Minister Yoav Gallant on November 21, marking an unprecedented move against sitting Israeli leaders.

Israel rejected the arrest warrant for Netanyahu, considering the charges false and anti-Semitic. The head of government will not give in to pressure and will continue the military operation in the Gaza Strip until all the tasks set are completed, the Prime Minister's Office said.

"Israel indignantly rejects the absurd and false accusations against it by the International Criminal Court, which is a politically motivated and biased body," the statement said.

"No anti-Israel decision will prevent the State of Israel from defending its citizens. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will not give in to pressure, will not surrender or retreat until all of the military objectives set by Israel at the beginning of the operation are achieved," the text said. 

The warrants effectively restrict Netanyahu and Gallant from travelling to any of the 120 countries party to the Rome Statute, as they face allegations of war crimes in Gaza by the ICC.

"The acceptance by Israel of the Court's jurisdiction is not required, as the Court can exercise its jurisdiction on the basis of territorial jurisdiction of Palestine," the ICC's pre-trial chamber stated, rejecting Israel's jurisdictional challenge.

The ICC cited "reasonable grounds" to believe both leaders committed multiple crimes, including using starvation as a warfare method and crimes against humanity encompassing murder and persecution. According to the court's findings, they allegedly orchestrated the systematic deprivation of essential supplies to Gaza's civilian population, including food, water, fuel, and medical aid.

The court claimed that limited humanitarian aid approvals were insufficient to address Gaza's humanitarian crisis. Medical shortages led to issues, including surgeries performed without anaesthesia.

Israel had previously filed an official objection in September, challenging the ICC prosecutor's authority to issue arrest warrants. However, the pre-trial chamber dismissed these claims, noting that Israel had opted not to pursue a deferral request when notified of the investigation in 2021.

The warrants may significantly affect Israel’s diplomatic relations with ICC member states while raising questions about the future mobility of Israeli officials.

The arrest warrants are classified as ‘secret’, in order to protect witnesses and to safeguard the conduct of the investigations. However, the Chamber decided to release the information below since conduct similar to that addressed in the warrant of arrest appears to be ongoing. 

ICC judges also issued an arrest warrant for a Hamas group leader Mohammed Al-Masri, commonly known as “Mr Deif”, for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity who is believed to be already dead from an Israeli airstrike on Gaza

“The Chamber found reasonable grounds to believe that Mr Deif, born in 1965, the highest commander of the military wing of Hamas (known as the al-Qassam Brigades) at the time of the alleged conduct, is responsible for the crimes against humanity of murder; extermination; torture; and rape and other form of sexual violence; as well as the war crimes of murder, cruel treatment, torture; taking hostages; outrages upon personal dignity; and rape and other form of sexual violence.”

It added, “The Chamber found reasonable grounds to believe that Mr Deif bears criminal responsibility for the aforementioned crimes for (i) having committed the acts jointly and through others and (ii) having ordered or induced the commission of the crimes, and (iii) for his failure to exercise proper control over forces under his effective command and control.”

Given the ICC’s arrest warrant along with the Civil Inquiry Committee’s announcement that it would be releasing the preliminary findings from its investigation into the October 7 attacks, Netanyahu is facing mounting pressure from both outside Israel and within. As a result, it appears as if the Israeli prime minister is running out of options as he looks to secure his political survival.