From the Liveblog of
Monday, May 20, 2024
‘Scandalous’ for ICC to put Israelis in same category as ‘vile, cruel’ Hamas — outgoing Labor chair
Sam Sokol is the Times of Israel's political correspondent. He was previously a reporter for the Jerusalem Post, Jewish Telegraphic Agency and Haaretz. He is the author of "Putin’s Hybrid War and the Jews"
International Criminal Court chief prosecutor Karim Khan’s decision to seek arrest warrants against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant is one that “the State of Israel will not and cannot accept,” says Labor leader Merav Michaeli during her party’s weekly faction meeting in the Knesset.
“It is simply a scandal to put the Israeli leadership in the same category as a vile, cruel terrorist organization. This is something we cannot accept under any circumstances,” she says.
Khan is also seeking warrants against three Hamas leaders — Yahya Sinwar, Mohammed Deif and Ismail Haniyeh.
Attacking Netanyahu, Michaeli says that Israel is undergoing “a series of unprecedented political failures: threats of an embargo on the State of Israel, threats and consideration of economic sanctions by Western countries, by the UN, even sanctions on individual Israelis.”
“And almost a decision to impose sanctions on a military unit by the United States, our great friend,” she adds, referring to Washington’s having weighed but ultimately holding off on sanctions against the IDF’s Netzah Yehuda battalion.
“Every day that Netanyahu is in power… he puts decades of Zionism, security, and building the State of Israel down the drain,” she declares.
