Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) Welcomes ICC Arrest Warrants against Israel’s Netanyahu and Gallant

The warrants were issued against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defence Minister Yoav Gallant for crimes against humanity and war crimes, including the war crime of starvation as a weapon of warfare. Given the gravity of the alleged crimes and considering Canada’s legal obligations as a signatory to the Rome Statute, CJPME urges Canada to make a public statement in support of the decision of the ICC and cooperate in the arrest and prosecution of Netanyahu and Gallant.

“These arrest warrants provide a rare and urgent opportunity to hold Israeli leaders accountable for their brutal and ongoing crimes against the Palestinian people in Gaza, and Canada has a legal duty to enforce them. Prime Minister Trudeau must announce that he will arrest Netanyahu and Gallant and turn them over to the ICC if they ever step foot on Canadian territory,” said Michael Bueckert, Vice President of CJPME.

In issuing the warrants for arrest, the ICC found reasonable grounds to believe that Netanyahu and Gallant “bear criminal responsibility” as “co-perpetrators” for committing multiple horrific acts including the war crime of starvation as a method of warfare, as well as the crimes against humanity of murder, persecution, and other inhumane acts. The court found it reasonable to conclude that “both individuals intentionally and knowingly deprived the civilian population in Gaza of objects indispensable to their survival, including food, water, and medicine and medical supplies, as well as fuel and electricity.” Evoking the language of the crime of genocide, the ICC noted that this deprivation “created conditions of life calculated to bring about the destruction of part of the civilian population in Gaza, which resulted in the death of civilians, including children due to malnutrition and dehydration.”

CJPME is concerned that Canada, in concert with the US government, may seek to downplay, ignore, or even obstruct the work of the ICC in bringing Israeli war criminals to justice. CJPME notes that the Trudeau government has repeatedly attempted to discourage the ICC from its investigation of alleged war crimes in the occupied Palestinian territory. The US, Canada and many of their NATO allies have been engaged in an underhanded behind-the-scenes campaign to prevent the ICC from issuing warrants against Israeli leaders.

However, Canada is obliged under Article 86 of the Rome Statute to fully cooperate with the ICC in its investigation and prosecution of crimes. CJPME also reminds the Liberal government that on March 18 it voted in support of an NDP motion on Palestine which included a pledge to “support the prosecution of all crimes and violations of international law committed in the region” and “support the work of the International Court of Justice and the International Criminal Court.”

“Trudeau likes to boast of his support for the ICC and the so-called ‘rules-based international order,’ but this is the moment when those principles will be truly tested. If Trudeau fails to cooperate with the ICC in the arrest of Netanyahu for his crimes against humanity, it will prove that he believes that the law really doesn’t apply to everyone,” said Bueckert.