Photo: Sjoerd van der Hucht / Alamy
The International Criminal Court (ICC) is preparing arrest warrants for Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich. This was reported by The Wall Street Journal, citing sources in The Hague. According to the newspaper, ICC Chief Prosecutor Kareem Khan had been considering filing charges before he went on leave amid a UN investigation into sexual harassment allegations against him.
The cases against the Israeli ministers are based on their role in the expansion of Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank, which, according to the ICC, may violate the Geneva Conventions. The fate of the warrants is now to be decided by two of Khan’s deputies.
If decisions are made on Ben-Gvir and Smotrych, this could significantly aggravate relations between the ICC and Israel, shifting the focus of investigations from the Gaza Strip to the West Bank. As a reminder, back in 2014, the Palestinian Authority recognised the jurisdiction of the ICC, which opened the door to investigations on its territory.
At the same time, Khan was at the centre of a personal scandal. A Malaysian lawyer who worked with him during his international travels told the UN that he had forced her into non-consensual sexual relations in New York, Paris and The Hague. According to the woman, she remained silent out of fear of retaliation and her mother’s health problems. In April 2024, she filed a formal complaint with the ICC leadership.
Shortly afterwards, Khan cancelled his visit to Israel and announced his intention to issue arrest warrants for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and then-Defence Minister Yoav Galant, which raised suspicions of political motivation for his actions.
Karim Khan denies all charges. His lawyers said that he “acted solely on the basis of evidence” and “did not have any improper relationship”. According to the WSJ, the prosecutor pressured the complainant to withdraw her complaint, warning that it would “destroy their reputation and discredit the work of the ICC”.
