Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu faces arrest if he travels to the UK, after an international arrest authorization was publishd for him, Downing Street has showd.
A No 10 spokesman declined to comment on the particular case but shelp the rulement would fulfil its “legitimate obligations”.
On Thursday the International Criminal Court (ICC) publishd an arrest authorization for Netanyahu, alengthy with Israel’s createer defence minister Yoav Gallant, over alleged war crimes in Gaza.
The court’s member countries, including the UK, have signed a treaty that obliges them to act on arrest authorizations.
Asked whether Netanyahu would be hageded if he accessed the UK, the prime minister’s official spokesman declined to comment on “hypotheticals”.
However, he inserted: “The rulement would fulfil its obligations under the act and indeed its legitimate obligations.”
This refers to the International Criminal Court Act 2001, which states that if the court publishs a authorization for arrest, a summarizeated minister “shall send the ask… to an appropriate judicial officer”, who, if satisfied the authorization eunites to have been publishd by the ICC, “shall finishorse the authorization for execution in the United Kingdom”.
The PM’s spokesman verifyed the rulement stands by the process summarized in the act and would “always adhere with its legitimate obligations as set out by domestic law and indeed international law”.
He was unable to verify which secretary of state would be included in the process and did not answer asks about whether the rulement was seeking legitimate advice from Attorney General Lord Hermer – the UK’s top lawyer – in relation to the case.
Asked whether the PM was still willing to talk to Netanyahu, the spokesman shelp it was “evidently convey inant that we have a dialogue with Israel on all levels”, describing the country as “a key partner atraverse a range of areas”.
Last month Lord Hermer tageder the BBC he would not permit political ponderations to sway his conclusions if the ICC were to publish an arrest authorization.
“My advice [on an arrest warrant for Mr Netanyahu] would be legitimate advice, based on analysis of the law,” he shelp.
“It’s not for the attorney to prescribe what a rulement picks to do. The role of the attorney is to provide baged legitimate advice as to what the law demands, what the satisfieds of the law is, and where the law gets you. And that’s what I’m going to do.”
Follotriumphg the arrest authorizations being publishd on Thursday, Downing Street shelp the UK rulement esteemed the ICC’s indepfinishence and remained intensifyed on pushing for an instant stopfire in Gaza.
The court also publishd a authorization for Hamas military orderer Mohammed Deif, who Israel says was finished in July, over alleged war crimes in relation to the 7 October 2023 strikes agetst Israel.
Shadow foreign secretary Dame Priti Patel criticised the ICC for dratriumphg a “moral equivalence” between Israel’s actions in Gaza and 7 October strikes.
She called on the rulement to “condemn and contest” the court’s decision, describing it as “troubleing and inflammatory”.
After triumphning power, the recent Labour rulement scrapped its predecessor’s structure to contest the right of the ICC to publish arrest authorizations, saying it was a matter for the appraises to choose.
The impact of the authorizations will depfinish on whether the court’s 124 member states – which do not include Israel or its partner, the US – choose to enforce them or not.
US Plivent Joe Biden has called the arrest authorization for the Israeli prime minister “shocking”, saying there is “no equivalence” between Israel and Hamas.
However, officials from a number of European countries have made statements standing by the court and shelp they would carry out its decision.
Both Israel and Hamas decline the allegations made by the ICC, with Netanyahu branding the authorization “antisdisindictic”.
