IS ICC ARREST WARRANT AGAINST NETANYAHU ENFORCEABLE

When the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague issued arrest warrants against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin "Bibi" Netanyahu and former defence minister Yoav Gallant over war crimes recently, the top of the mind question was whether they were enforceable.

- T K VINEETH

Israel is not a signatory to the Rome Statute, the founding treaty of the ICC that outlines the court's structure and jurisdiction, and has vehemently contested the court's remit. Netanyahu's mindless, relentless and remorseless retribution against Hamas following the ghastly mass murder of over 1,000 Israelis last year has left nearly 45,000 people in Gaza dead, many of them women and children, over 1 lakh injured, and inflicted immeasurable pain on many more.

While the prime minister labelled the ICC judges as anti-Semites, there can be no justification for the colossal collateral damage in Gaza. Several major world powers including the US, China, Russia, and India are not members of the ICC, which means the warrantees can travel to these countries safely. ICC doesn't have a police force on its own and, hence, the onus of making the arrest lies with 124 countries that are signatories to the Rome Statute, should Netanyahu and Gallant make themselves available to be captured. Besides, not all ICC member states bother to implement the ICC's fiat against someone as powerful as Netanyahu, one of the most protected heads of state with diplomatic immunity, even if they get the chance.