Report: Israel draws up list of potential ICC war crime defendants
The ICC is currently investigating possible war crimes committed by Israel in 2014
Jerusalem has reportedly drawn up a list with the names of hundreds of military officers and government officials who may be at risk of prosecution from the International Criminal Court (ICC) for alleged war crimes committed against Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.
According to Israeli daily Haaretz, some 200-300 officers and defense officials could be targets of prosecutors at The Hague, who have been investigating Israel specifically for alleged war crimes committed during 2014's Operation Protective Edge.
The identities of the officers and defense officials have not been made public, according to Haaretz.
The list may include senior leaders as well, including current Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, then-IDF chief of staff Benny Gantz, former defense minister Moshe Yaalon, and Aviv Kochavi, the military's former intelligence chief.
Gantz is currently the country's defense minister and leader of the Blue and White party in the Knesset (Israel Parliament), while Kochavi succeeded Gantz and serves as the military's top general.
Avigdor Lieberman, head of the right-wing Yisrael Beitenu party, current Yamina party leader Naftali Bennett, along with former and current heads of the Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) could also be on this list.
Three ICC judges are expected to decide in the coming days on whether to open an investigation against Israel, and rule whether "the Palestinian territories fall within the jurisdiction of the court or not."
In June, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo warned the ICC that the United States would "exact consequences" against the ICC if it goes through with its investigation into the Jewish state.
“The International Criminal Court is a political body, not a judicial institution," Pompeo said in a statement.
"This unfortunate reality has been confirmed yet again by the ICC Prosecutor’s attempt to assert jurisdiction over Israel, which like the United States, is not a party to the Rome Statute that created the Court.”