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ICC decision rescues Netanyahu’s political career — Politico

It is reported that Benny Gantz is considered to be the politician who can end Netanyahu’s political career

BRUSSELS, May 21. /TASS/. The International Criminal Court’s (ICC) top prosecutor Karim Khan seeking an arrest warrant for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has saved the political career of the Israeli premier, helping him stay in power, according to Politico.

According to the newspaper, "just when it appeared Benjamin Netanyahu’s days in power might finally be numbered, up steps the International Criminal Court to save him." The news outlet insists that accusing the Israeli leadership of war crimes in the Gaza Strip will not result in "a pause in the fighting, accusations of war crimes will cause Israelis to rally around their embattled prime minister." According to Politico, over the weekend, retired General Benny Gantz threatened to quit the government "if Netanyahu didn’t produce a post-war template for how Gaza would be governed" which brought the war cabinet to the brink of collapse. According to the news outlet, Gantz is considered to be the politician who can end Netanyahu’s political career.

Ex-Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert (2006-2008) told Politico that the Israelis will have a negative reaction to the ICC decision because it equates Netanyahu with Hamas leader in Gaza Yahya Sinwar. Nadav Shtrauchler, a former campaign strategist for Netanyahu, told the news outlet that "most Israelis will view Khan as targeting Israel and not just Netanyahu."

Earlier, Khan said he had appealed to the Pre-Trial Chamber to issue arrest warrants for Netanyahu and Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Galant. The document said that based on the evidence gathered, the prosecution has reasonable grounds to believe that both "bear criminal responsibility for the <…> war crimes and crimes against humanity committed on the territory of the State of Palestine (in the Gaza Strip) from at least October 8, 2023."

The ICC Prosecutor's Office opened an investigation in the Palestinian territories in 2021. At the time, it was stated that the prosecution investigated possible war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in the Gaza Strip by Israeli forces, as well as by Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups. According to Khan, alleged crimes committed during the escalation of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, which began on October 8, 2023, also fall within the mandate of the Prosecutor's Office.

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