French official says France gave Netanyahu permission to use its airspace despite ICC warrant

Israel asked France for authorization for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Wing of Zion plane to fly over French airspace, according to a French diplomatic official.

The French gave permission, according to the official.

“They decided to take another route and we don’t know the reason,” says the French official.

Netanyahu’s flight to New York, where he will attend the UN General Assembly, avoids the airspace of all countries except Italy and Greece, despite the longer journey this entails.

The trajectory, visible on Flight Tracker, may be an effort to avoid problems related to the International Criminal Court’s warrant for his arrest.

Many countries have said that pursuant to the ICC warrant — issued over alleged war crimes, which Israel denies — they would arrest Netanyahu if he were present on their soil.

France, which would normally be along the flight path, said last year it would not arrest the premier, though this drew a rebuke from the European Union.