France’s foreign ministry has announced that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu cannot be arrested under the International Criminal Court’s (ICC) warrant due to immunity as a sitting head of government. This announcement follows the ICC’s issuance of arrest warrants for Netanyahu and former Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant over alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza since October 2023.
While France expressed commitment to international justice and respect for the ICC’s decisions, it emphasized that Netanyahu’s immunity stems from Israel’s non-membership in the ICC. The statement marks the first such declaration by a state party to the ICC and aligns with arguments previously used to avoid arrests of leaders like Russia’s Vladimir Putin and Sudan’s Omar al-Bashir.
The ICC, however, has consistently dismissed immunity claims for heads of state, maintaining that its mandate applies universally. All 124 state parties to the Rome Statute, including EU members, are legally obligated to arrest individuals under ICC warrants. Without cooperation from member states, however, the court’s decisions remain unenforceable as trials cannot be conducted in absentia.
The arrest warrants are part of an ongoing investigation launched in 2021 into alleged war crimes in Palestine. While Israel is not an ICC member, Palestine gained membership in 2015, enabling the court to investigate crimes committed by Israeli nationals in Gaza, the West Bank, and East Jerusalem.
France’s announcement coincides with its active role in brokering a ceasefire deal between Israel and Lebanon, raising speculation that the timing of its immunity statement may be politically motivated.