ICC to exercise its authority according to law | on Netanyahu arrest warrant

 China: "ICC to exercise its authority according to law" on Netanyahu arrest warrant

As the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Galant on charges of war crimes, China, which has been critical of Israel in relation to the Gaza War, has effectively reaffirmed its support.

At a briefing, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said, “China has taken note of the relevant reports,” and “We hope that the ICC will maintain an objective and fair position, exercise its authority in accordance with the law, and comprehensively and in good faith interpret and apply the Rome Statute and general international law according to unified standards.”

He added, “On the Palestinian issue, China has always stood on the side of fairness and justice and international law, and has opposed all acts that violate international law, including international humanitarian law, and has condemned acts of harming civilians and attacks on civilian facilities.” He added, “China supports all efforts that help realize fairness and justice and uphold the authority of international law.” In May, when the ICC requested an arrest warrant for Prime Minister Netanyahu and others, the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated, "We must not allow the collective punishment of the Palestinian people to continue," and "We hope that the ICC will maintain an objective and fair stance and exercise its authority in accordance with the law."

The ICC is the first permanent international court that can punish individuals who have committed genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes, and crimes of aggression. It was launched in July 2002 in accordance with the 'Rome Statute' adopted by 120 countries in Rome in 1998.

It currently has 124 member countries, with China, the United States, India, and Israel not joining.

Once an arrest warrant is issued and sent, ICC member countries must arrest the wanted criminal and hand them over to the Hague Tribunal in accordance with the ICC statute and their domestic laws.

Israel is not a member of the ICC and therefore has no obligation to arrest or extradite its own leaders, but it does have restrictions on the arrestees from visiting the 124 ICC member states.

Most of Israel’s allies, including the UK, are ICC members.