Speaker Mohammed Ahmed Al Yamahi underscored the need for global efforts to hold those responsible for crimes against the Palestinian people accountable, ensuring international protection for Palestinians and safeguarding their legitimate and just rights.
The Arab Parliament has welcomed the International Criminal Court’s (ICC) decision to issue arrest warrants against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defence Minister Yoav Gallant, accusing them of committing war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.
Mohammed Ahmed Al Yamahi, Speaker of the Arab Parliament, stated that this decision represents a victory for international legitimacy and a clear call to hold accountable all those implicated in grave violations of international law and humanitarian principles.
He emphasised that such action is crucial, especially in light of Israel’s ongoing violations against the defenceless Palestinian people, marking an end to the impunity that encourages the occupation to commit further crimes and perpetuate genocide.
Al Yamahi reaffirmed the Arab Parliament’s full support for the International Criminal Court and all international institutions striving for justice. He underscored the need for global efforts to hold those responsible for crimes against the Palestinian people accountable, ensuring international protection for Palestinians and safeguarding their legitimate and just rights.
The Speaker of the Arab Parliament urged the international community, signatories to the Rome Statute, and non-signatory states to uphold the application of international law and support the ICC in achieving justice, as it serves as a deterrent and a means to halt the ongoing crimes against the Palestinian people.
Meanwhile, European Union High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell said that EU member states are obliged to implement an arrest warrant against Israeli and Hamas leaders issued by the ICC.
“The states that signed the Rome convention are obliged to implement the decision of the court. It’s not optional,” said Borrell on Saturday after a workshop in Nicosia organised by the “Two-State Coalition for Israel and Palestine,” an Israeli-Palestinian activist organisation.
Borrell, who was the keynote speaker at the event, made the remarks when asked by journalists to comment on the arrest warrant issued by the ICC against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, and Hamas leader Ibrahim Al-Masri, for alleged crimes against humanity, Xinhua news agency reported.
Asked to comment on a report that Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has invited Netanyahu to visit the country, Borrel said that “the arrest warrants issued by the court have to be implemented also by Hungary…by all members of the European Union. And if they don’t, then there is a legal case of not fulfillment of the legal obligation”.
He also rebuffed accusations from Israel that the warrants were ‘anti-semitic’, saying that a phrase alluding to the “darkest periods of history” should not be used lightly.
“Every time someone disagrees with the policy of one Israeli government he is being accused of anti-semitism…. This is not acceptable,” Borrell said.
There has been a mixed response by EU member states to the ICC warrants, with France and Germany saying that they are considering the issue and some countries saying that they would arrest those named in it.
Borrell will travel to Lebanon on Sunday for a series of bilateral talks with Lebanese leaders and United Nations representatives.
ALSO READ: Trump names two Arab Americans for his Cabinet
