Is Netanyahu immune from ICC arrest warrant as France claims?

Paris has argued that the warrants issued for war crimes are not valid as Israel is not a member of the ICC.

On November 21, the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former defence minister, Yoav Gallant, over what it says may constitute their legal responsibility for war crimes and crimes against humanity perpetrated during Israel’s war on Gaza.

A flurry of official announcements followed from European leaders stating they would uphold the decision and meet their obligations to arrest the Israeli leader should he step foot in their territories. One notable exception is Hungary, whose leader Viktor Orban has promised not to arrest Netanyahu and has instead extended a warm invitation to visit.

Now, France has also bucked the general trend.

After initially stating that it would adhere to the ICC statutes, Paris has since suggested that Netanyahu enjoys immunity from the arrest warrants as Israel is “not a party to the ICC”.

“Such immunities apply to Prime Minister Netanyahu and other ministers in question and must be taken into consideration should the ICC ask us to arrest them and hand them over,” a statement by the French Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs read.