Mexico, Chile ask ICC to investigate possible crimes in Gaza war
Mexico and Chile have referred Israel’s war in Gaza to the International Criminal Court (ICC), expressing “growing worry” about escalating violence and asking the court to investigate possible crimes committed since October 7.
Mexico’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs cited concern over violence “particularly against civilian targets”.
US says its support for Israel is ‘ironclad’ despite differences
That support will persist even as Netanyahu explicitly rebuffs US calls for establishing a Palestinian state, US State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller has suggested. “Our support for Israel remains ironclad. But that doesn’t mean that there are no differences between our two countries,” Miller told reporters.
He added that the issue is “not a question of the United States pressuring” Israel to do anything, but it’s about Israel’s own choices and whether it will seize the opportunity for “greater integration” in the region and ending the conflict.
Netanyahu shoots down US talk of pathway to Palestinian state
In remarks on Thursday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated flatly that he would not support any future creation of a Palestinian state, undercutting recent statements by US officials who claim that the administration of US President Joe Biden envisions a post-war normalisation deal between Israel and Saudi Arabia that would include a “path” towards Palestinian statehood.
But Israeli officials, including Netanyahu, have repeatedly shot down the possibility of a future Palestinian state. “In any future arrangement … Israel needs security control all territory west of the Jordan,” Netanyahu said in a news conference. “So it contradicts the idea of self-rule [for Palestinians]. So what? I tell this truth to our American friends,” Netanyahu added. The Israeli prime minister has previously said that he was “proud” to have prevented the establishment of a Palestinian state.
Ben Gvir tells army to shoot ‘terrorists’ even if they don’t pose a threat – before office claims misquote
According to The Times of Israel, which quoted Israel’s far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, the instructions run counter to the rules of engagement of both the Israeli army and police – despite repeated incidents in which Israeli forces have shot unarmed people, including Israeli captives held in Gaza.
“You have complete backing from me. When your life is in danger or see a terrorist – even if he does not endanger you – shoot. I have your back,” Ben-Gvir told Israeli army officers during a visit to the occupied West Bank.
Ben-Gvir’s office later released an updated statement saying that he had told Border Guards to shoot “armed terrorists”. Statements from Israeli officials have been used by lawyers representing South Africa at the International Court of Justice to argue that Israel has demonstrated its intent to commit genocide. Israeli officials appear to have since attempted to be more careful with their language.
Biden says strikes against Houthis will go on
US President Joe Biden has said that strikes against the Houthis will continue until the group halts its attacks on commercial vessels in the Red Sea. The Houthis have vowed to press forward with the raids until Israel’s war on Gaza ends.
Asked by reporters at the White House whether the strikes were effective, Biden responded “When you say ‘working,’ are they stopping the Houthi? No. Are they going to continue? Yes.”
Houthis: Freedom for all ships to pass through Red Sea – except those linked to Israel
Responding to the latest US strikes on the Houthis in Yemen, the rebel group’s spokesperson Mohamed Abdulsalam said that “continued US-British aggression” would not “prevent [the Houthis] from continuing to support the Palestinian people”.
“We affirm the freedom of maritime navigation for all ships of the world, except for the ships of the Zionist enemy [Israel] heading to the ports of occupied Palestine,” Abdulsalam added.
