JERUSALEM

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday appealed to what he called “leaders of the free world" to stand against possible arrest warrants for Israeli officials by the International Criminal Court (ICC) over war crimes in the Gaza Strip.

In a video statement on his X account, Netanyahu harshly criticized the expected arrest warrants by the Hague-based court for war crimes committed against Palestinians as "a scandal on a historical scale."

He alleged that the ICC is trying to deny Israel’s right to defend itself, saying the move "will be an unprecedented antisemitic hate crime."

Netanyahu, however, vowed to continue his war against Gaza, and to go ahead with his plans to invade Rafah, home to more than 1.4 million displaced Palestinians in the southern tip of the Gaza Strip.

"No decision, neither in The Hague nor anywhere else, will shake our determination to achieve all the goals of the war," said the premier, who is facing growing pressure at home to prioritize the release of Israelis held captive by Hamas instead of attacking Rafah.

Media reports emerged about possible arrest warrants to be issued by the ICC against top Israeli officials, including Netanyahu, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and Army Chief of Staff Herzl Halevi.

There was no comment yet from the court on the potential arrest warrants.

Israel is not a member of the ICC and does not recognize its jurisdiction. Palestine was admitted as a member of The Hague-based court in 2015.

The Israeli Foreign Ministry instructed its embassies worldwide earlier this week to be prepared for potential repercussions if the ICC issues arrest warrants against Israeli officials for war crimes and human rights violations in Gaza.

Israel has waged a brutal offensive on the Palestinian enclave since a cross-border attack by Hamas on Oct. 7 last year, which Tel Aviv says killed nearly 1,200 people.

More than 34,500 Palestinians have since been killed, mostly women and children, and thousands of others injured amid mass destruction and severe shortages of necessities.

More than six months into the Israeli war, vast swathes of Gaza lay in ruins, pushing 85% of the enclave’s population into internal displacement amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water, and medicine, according to the UN.

Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice. An interim ruling in January ordered Tel Aviv to stop genocidal acts and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.

*Writing by Ahmed Asmar