ICC members demand end to ‘intimidation’ so court can carry out work

A group of 93 states has demanded the International Criminal Court be allowed to work “without intimidation” after reports that Israel has been engaged in a nine-year clandestine campaign to undermine it.

In a statement the group said it would work to preserve the court’s “integrity from any political interference and pressure,” amid claims by the office of the ICC’s chief prosecutor, Karim Khan, that it has received threats after he requested arrest warrants for senior Israeli government and Hamas figures, including Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant.

The statement in defense of the ICC, which called on “all states to ensure full cooperation with the court for it to carry out its important mandate,” was drafted by Belgium, Chile, Jordan, Senegal and Slovenia after “eye-opening” revelations about Israeli intelligence operations against the court published in The Guardian. It was also signed by Western states including Germany, France, Canada and the UK.

A diplomatic source told the paper that the story had “made some (diplomats) realise that it’s time to put out some sort of statement from the states that belong to the court, responding to what has now come to light.”

The source added that the statement was not just aimed at the actions of Israeli intelligence agencies but was also a response to the behavior of other states, including a cyberattack on the ICC last year that came during investigations into senior Russian figures accused of involvement or complicity in crimes committed in Ukraine.

The source told The Guardian: “The court is going after some very powerful people, not just in the Palestine investigation, and it’s time to send a message that the state parties are there to defend it.”

Danya Chaikel, the International Federation for Human Rights’ representative to the ICC, said: “This is a unique moment of international solidarity, with 93 ICC states parties standing up for global justice and accountability for mass atrocities. They are collectively opposing the egregious threats to the court from powerful countries including Israel, the US and Russia, and strongly rejecting their efforts to manipulate the rule of law for political gains.”