The International Criminal Court has issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and Hamas leader Mohammed Deif for alleged war crimes in connection with the war in Gaza.

The arrest warrants put Netanyahu and Gallant at risk of arrest if they travel abroad. There are unconfirmed reports that Deif may have been killed by Israel.

The court’s chief prosecutor, Karim Khan, had requested the arrest warrants in May, saying there were reasonable grounds to believe that Netanyahu and Gallant bore “criminal responsibility” for causing mass famine in Gaza, amounting to war crimes and crimes against humanity.

On Thursday, the court said it had found reasonable grounds to believe that Deif was responsible for crimes against humanity and war crimes, including murder, torture, rape and hostage-taking.

The US previously welcomed the ICC’s war crimes arrest warrants against Vladimir Putin and other Russian officials for atrocities committed in Ukraine, while denouncing the court’s prosecution of Netanyahu and Gallant, a mixed position that the Biden administration has been exposed to accusations of double standards from many UN members. , especially from the Global South.

The three-judge panel wrote in its unanimous decision to issue arrest warrants for Netanyahu and Gallant: “The chamber found that there are reasonable grounds to believe that both individuals have deliberately and knowingly deprived the civilian population in Gaza of objects essential for their survival, including food. , water, medicine and medical supplies, as well as fuel and electricity.”

Israel has rejected the jurisdiction of the court, which is based in The Hague, and denies war crimes in Gaza. The ICC said on Thursday that Israel’s acceptance of the court’s jurisdiction was not required.

Israel’s Foreign Ministry said in September it had filed two legal papers challenging the ICC’s jurisdiction and arguing that the court had not given Israel the opportunity to investigate the allegations itself before seeking the arrest warrants.

Some member states have previously ignored ICC orders, but Netanyahu and Gallant would nevertheless risk arrest if they traveled to a country that had signed the 1998 Rome Statute.

Khan had sought arrest warrants against three Hamas leaders, two of whom have since been killed, for alleged war crimes in connection with the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel, in which fighters killed more than 1,200 Israelis, mostly civilians, and kidnapped 250 .

Israel has said it also killed Deif in an airstrike, but Hamas has neither confirmed nor denied this.

The arrest warrants could increase external pressure on Netanyahu’s government as the US tries to broker a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, but could strengthen the prime minister’s political position in Israel in the short term as the Most Israelis reject the ICC’s jurisdiction as interference in their country’s internal affairs.

Joe Biden has said he does not believe Netanyahu is doing enough to secure a ceasefire, after the Israeli leader vowed not to compromise on Israeli control of strategic territory in Gaza. Netanyahu has accused Hamas of failing to negotiate in good faith.