The International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants on November 21 against the Israeli Prime Minister, Benyamin Netanyahu, and his former Defense Minister, Yoav Gallant, as well as the head of the armed wing of Hamas Mohammed Deif. Warrants for war crimes and crimes against humanity which arouse the indignation of Israelis.
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With our correspondent in Jerusalem, Sami Boukhelifa
“ They are innocent “. Benyamin Netanyahu and Yoav Gallant innocent, says Zalman. 44,000 dead in Gaza? “ It’s not our responsibility “, continues this Israeli-American retiree. “ Military experts say our military is probably – statistically speaking – the most respectful military that has ever existed. “.
He denounces the ICC decision. “ It is very clear that the ICC, like many international institutions, has exceeded its prerogatives. These institutions think they can do anything. Moreover, they put our leaders and a leader of Hamas on the same level. It is an assumed way of establishing an equivalence. And to say: it’s as if they were all in the same basket. But most important to me, as an Israeli-American who moved here 40 years ago, is that the United States supports Israel unconditionally on this issue. “.
“If he must be judged, it is here and not elsewhere”
In the streets of Jerusalem, these arrest warrants are embarrassing. A delicate subject. Liat is not a big fan of Benjamin Netanyahu and yet she does not know how to react. Because for her, an arrest warrant against her Prime Minister is in fact an arrest warrant against Israel. “ I am pro-Israel. I believe in my country. I don’t trust international institutions “, she said. “ I think Netanyahu must be accountable, but only to us his fellow citizens. If he must be judged, it is here and not elsewhere “.
Itai, too, takes these ICC mandates as a personal attack. “ It’s a war. Bad things have been done on both sides. I don’t like Netanyahu. But this is not about him. The Criminal Court’s decision is against Israel. It reflects a bad image of Israel and Israelis », she fears.
Moreover, denounce these Israelis, “ These ICC arrest warrants also target a Hamas leader. They put us all in the same basket. This is unacceptable “.
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