The United Kingdom has said it will comply with its legal obligations under international law regarding the arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The ICC issued arrest warrants on Thursday for Netanyahu and former Israeli defence minister Yoav Gallant.
The court accuses them of crimes against humanity and war crimes during Israel’s war on Hamas in Gaza, which began after Hamas’s attack on October 7, 2023.
A spokesperson for UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer said on Friday that the government would not comment on specific cases. “The UK will always comply with its legal obligations as set out by domestic law and international law,” he said.
The UK signed the Rome Statute—the treaty that established the ICC—in 1998 and ratified it in 2001. Under the UK’s ICC Act of 2001, British authorities are required to act on ICC arrest warrants.
The act states that if a minister receives an ICC request for an arrest, they must pass it to the courts. Once a judge confirms the warrant’s authenticity, it can be executed in the UK. However, the law has never been used, as no one charged by the ICC has visited Britain before.
It remains unclear if the legal process begins immediately after the ICC issues an arrest warrant or only when the individual arrives in the UK.
“We would obviously fulfil our obligations under the act,” the spokesperson confirmed.
