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Rabat – Throughout the course of his aggressive campaign on Gaza, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has reportedly contacted US President Biden to seek assistance in preventing the International Criminal Court (ICC) from issuing arrest warrants for Israeli officials.
The ICC is deliberating the issuance of arrest warrants for Israeli officials in connection with war crimes committed during the Israeli Occupation Forces’ (IOF) bloody war on Gaza.
Axios news outlet reported that a phone call between Biden and Netanyahu took place on Sunday. The outlet quoted two Israeli officials as saying that the call took place amid growing concerns within the Israeli government over the possibility of senior officials facing international jurisdictions.
According to a report by Reuters, ICC prosecutors have conducted interviews with staff from Gaza’s major hospitals to gather evidence of potential crimes.
The ICC investigation follows the gruesome and devastating war that has resulted in the deaths of tens of thousands of Palestinian civilians.
In a harrowing update, more than 300 bodies were unearthed from mass graves at Nasser Hospital after Israeli forces withdrew from the area on April 7.
Meanwhile, the US State Department’s response to Israeli troop violations of Palestinian human rights has drawn criticism. Despite determining that five Israeli military battalions committed “gross violations,” the State Department announced its intention to continue funding at least four of them after they showed unspecified steps towards “remediation.”
The investigation has sparked controversy, with Russia accusing the US of hypocrisy for opposing the probe while supporting similar actions against other nations.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova criticized Washington’s stance, stating that it is intellectually “absurd” for the US to endorse arrest warrants against some leaders while rejecting them for others.
As devastation continues to sweep over the besieged strip, Hamas continues to review Israel’s ceasefire proposals. However, according to sources, Hamas officials have expressed dissatisfaction with Israel’s reluctance to commit to a complete ceasefire and withdrawal from Gaza.
The war has taken the utmost toll on Gaza’s civilian population. The territory’s civil defense agency has warned of the potential spread of disease and epidemics due to the accumulation of bodies under rubble, particularly as temperatures rise duringh the summer months.
