Arrest warrants ready for the International Criminal Court against Ben Gvir and Smotrich

The "Middle East Eye" website revealed that requests for arrest warrants against two prominent Israeli ministers on charges of apartheid are ready, with the presence of two deputy prosecutors at the International Criminal Court.

If arrest warrants are issued against National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, it will be the first time that an apartheid charge is directed to an international court.

The prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, Karim Khan, prepared cases against Ben Gvir and Smotrich before his leave in May, according to several sources within the court familiar with the matter.

A source at the International Criminal Court told the "Middle East Eye": "The requests for arrest warrants have been completed."

The source, who requested anonymity, added: "The only thing that hasn't happened is their submission to the court." The "Middle East Eye" can reveal that the deputy prosecutors have the authority to present them to pre-trial judges for consideration, but some within the International Criminal Court believe that the requests will be quietly shelved as the court faces unprecedented external pressures.

The newly elected U.S. administration led by Donald Trump imposed sanctions on Karim Khan last February, who took leave in May amid a United Nations investigation into allegations of sexual misconduct against him, which he denied.

In June, the United States imposed additional sanctions on four judges of the International Criminal Court.

This included two judges who approved Khan's request to issue arrest warrants against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, former Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, and three Hamas leaders last November.

The "Middle East Eye" revealed earlier this month that Khan faced a series of threats and warnings from prominent figures, including former British Foreign Secretary David Cameron, as well as close colleagues and family friends who provided briefings against him, and concerns for the prosecutor's safety raised by a team from Mossad in The Hague. Nevertheless, Khan submitted requests on May 20, 2024, resulting in the issuance of arrest warrants against Netanyahu and Gallant in November of that year.

The website reported that despite ongoing pressures, the prosecutor's legal team continued to investigate alleged Israeli war crimes and crimes against humanity in the occupied West Bank.

However, before he could submit the requests, Khan took leave after a failed attempt to suspend him from work.

A source at the International Criminal Court told the website that Karim Khan was ready. The source said: "No work is being done regarding the requests anymore. They were not in drafting. They were not under review. They were completed, and all that remains is to follow court procedures to submit the request. But Karim did not have enough time to do that because everything was happening very quickly. Then he stepped aside."

A statement from the International Criminal Court at that time indicated that Khan's deputies would continue his work on all cases, including the investigation in Palestine.

However, it was not publicly known whether the requests for arrest warrants against Ben Gvir and Smotrich had been submitted, as the court ordered in April not to publish any further requests.

Two sources at the International Criminal Court told the website that the deputy prosecutors, Nazhat Shamim Khan and Mami Mandia Nyan, did not submit the requests due to the threat of U.S. sanctions.

Israeli-British defense lawyer at the International Criminal Court, Nicholas Kaufman, stated to the Israeli public broadcasting authority "Kan" in June that the U.S. sanctions imposed on four judges at the International Criminal Court "were aimed at encouraging the dropping of arrest warrants against Prime Minister Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Gallant."

Kaufman added: "Based on that, most commentators believe that [punishing the judges] serves as an additional warning, so to speak, before punishing the deputy prosecutors who succeeded Karim Khan."

When the "Middle East Eye" requested comment on the status of the requests for Ben Gvir and Smotrich, and whether the fear of sanctions had delayed their submission, the prosecutor's office stated: "The office cannot comment on matters related to ongoing investigations and any specific charges that may arise concerning the cases being handled by the office. This approach is necessary to protect the integrity of the investigations and to ensure the safety and security of the victims, witnesses, and all those who interact with the office."