Netanyahu to skip Europe stopover amid ICC arrest warrant fear: Report
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu considered making a stopover in Europe on his way to the US later this month, but cancelled the plan amid fears the International Criminal Court (ICC) might issue an arrest warrant against him, the Israeli Broadcasting Authority has said.
ICC’s chief prosecutor Kharim Khan in May requested to issue arrest warrants against the Israeli prime minister and Hamas leaders over alleged war crimes. Since then, a team of judges has been deliberating on whether there are valid reasons to issue the warrants against them.
Should that happen, the 124 countries that are members of the ICC would be obligated to arrest Netanyahu should he step on their territory.
The idea of a stop in a European country friendly to Israel, possibly Hungary or the Czech Republic, came as the prime minister’s plane would have not been able to make a transatlantic flight with too many passengers from Tel Aviv to Washington, the report said.
Instead of the stopover, it added, Netanyahu will travel to the US with a limited entourage. He is expected to address the Congress on July 24.
Israel killed or wounded 60 percent of Hamas fighters: Gallant
Defense Minister Yoav Gallant says 60 percent of Hamas fighters have been “eliminated or wounded” since October 7. Addressing the Knesset, he said the army eliminated most of the group’s battalions.
He also said 3,000 ultra-Orthodox soldiers would be drafted into the army by next year in a gradual process. “Our goal is to draft all those that can be recruited according to the law. This is how we work,” he said.
This comes after the Supreme Court ruled in June that ultra-Orthodox Jewish men will also have to join the army, reversing a decades-long exception for the conservative community.
Gallant says Israel won’t allow Hamas presence in Rafah
Israel will not tolerate the return of Hamas to the border area between Egypt and the Gaza Strip, Defence Minister Yoav Gallant says, after meeting with US Middle East envoy Brett McGurk.
“The two discussed the importance of seizing the opportunity created to achieve an agreement for the return of hostages held by Hamas in Gaza,” read a statement released following the meeting. “They discussed the challenges that remain in achieving such an agreement, as well as possible solutions to address them,” it said.
Gantz says Netanyahu gov’t ignored his advice to shift focus to Lebanese border
Israeli opposition leader Benny Gantz says he had demanded the Israeli government shift its military focus to the troubled northern border with Lebanon in March when he was still a member of the country’s war cabinet.
“The prime minister hesitated,” Gantz said on X, adding that Netanyahu refused to add the return of northern residents to their homes by September 1 as one of the war’s objectives. “And we are paying the price,” he added.
His comments came as he mourned the death of two Israeli civilians who were killed on Tuesday in a Hezbollah rocket attack in northern Israel.
