What will happen if the ICC charges Netanyahu with war crimes? | Kenneth Roth

The Israeli prime minister has good reason to worry, and the defenses he has offered so far are unlikely to help him

The Israeli government believes that the international criminal court (ICC) in The Hague is about to file war crimes charges against Benjamin Netanyahu and other senior Israeli officials. We can't know for sure - the ICC has kept its plans close to the vest - but the Israeli prime minister has good reason to worry, and the defenses he has offered so far are unlikely to help him.

The ICC chief prosecutor Karim Khan's most likely target is Netanyahu's starvation strategy for Palestinian civilians in Gaza. Because the Israeli government has refused to let ICC staff enter Gaza, it will take time for Khan to complete the detailed investigation required to demonstrate other possible Israeli war crimes, such as indiscriminately bombing civilian areas and firing on military targets with foreseeably disproportionate civilian consequences. But the facts surrounding Israel's obstruction of humanitarian aid are readily available.