Israel’s Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, responded to the announcement by the International Criminal Court’s chief prosecutor that he and his defense minister will face charges relating to the conduct of the Jewish state during the war in Gaza.
In a video presented in English, the prime minister called the “absurd charges against me and Israel’s defense minister” a “moral outrage of historic proportions” that “would cast an everlasting mark of shame on the International Court.”
Netanyahu went on to describe the decision as creating a moral equivalency between the democratically elected leaders of Israel and the “henchmen” of Hamas, who committed murder, rape, defilement, and kidnapping against Jewish civilians on October 7th.
“This is like making a moral equivalence after September 11th between President Bush and Osama Bin Laden, or during World War II between FDR and Hitler,” he continued.
Netanyahu stated that the action would not have any effect on his country’s determination to eliminate the Hamas terrorists who are still fighting the IDF in Gaza and that the mission would continue to be engaged “in full compliance with international law.”
“We will continue to take unprecedented measures to get innocent civilians out of harm’s way and to ensure that humanitarian assistance reaches those in need in Gaza,” he said, reaffirming Israel’s policy of placing no limitations on the amount of aid allowed in the warzone.
Netanyahu concluded the three-minute statement by accusing the prosecutor of “callously pouring gasoline on the fires of antisemitism that are raging across the world, through this incendiary decision, Mr. Kahn takes his place among the great antisemites in modern times,” while comparing his actions to those of Nazi-era judges.
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