THE HAGUE – Israel has asked judges at the International Criminal Court (ICC) to withdraw arrest warrants against its prime minister and defence minister while the ICC reviews Israeli challenges to its jurisdiction over the conduct of the Gaza war.
Documents published on the ICC website late on Sunday also show Israel has asked the court to order the prosecution to suspend its investigation into alleged atrocity crimes in the Palestinian Territories.
The documents are dated May 9 and signed by Israeli Deputy Attorney General Gilad Noam.
The ICC issued arrest warrants on Nov. 21 for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former defence chief, as well as a Hamas leader, Ibrahim al-Masri, for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity in the Gaza conflict.
The ICC said in February that judges had withdrawn the arrest warrant for al-Masri, also known as Mohammed Deif, following credible reports of his death.
Israel, which rejects the jurisdiction of the Hague-based court and denies war crimes in Gaza, is contesting the warrants against Netanyahu and Gallant.
In April the ICC’s appeals chamber ruled that the judges of the pre-trial chamber which issued the warrants must review Israel’s objections regarding the court’s jurisdiction and the legality of the arrest warrants.
It is not clear what form the ordered review will take and there are no specific deadlines set for decisions on Israel’s request to withdraw the warrants and halt the investigation.
(Reporting by Stephanie van den Berg; Editing by Gareth Jones)
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