Threats and pressures
According to a report by The Guardian, Yossi Cohen, former head of Mossad, reportedly held secret meetings with the chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) in an attempt to pressure her to abandon Israel’s war crimes investigation. These pressures would be aimed at avoiding a formal investigation into alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity in the occupied Palestinian territories.
The report suggests that Cohen would have acted with the approval of high levels of the Israeli State, justifying the operation due to the threat of prosecutions against military personnel by the court. Cohen is mentioned as acting as an ‘unofficial messenger’ for Netanyahu.
Reactions and requests from the ICC prosecutor’s office
Sources close to the ICC have revealed that Cohen had pressured the chief prosecutor on several occasions not to proceed with a criminal investigation in the Palestine case. It is mentioned that Cohen would have told him: ‘You should help us and allow us to take care of you. You don’t want to get involved in things that could compromise your safety and that of your family.’ Both Cohen and the chief prosecutor have not responded to the British newspaper’s questions.
Current ICC chief prosecutor Karim Khan sought arrest warrants for senior Hamas and Israeli officials for war crimes and crimes against humanity, including Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his Defense Minister Yoav Gallant. Gallant declared that his country ‘is not a party’ and does not recognize the authority of the International Criminal Court, highlighting that the Israeli Army fights respecting international law.
Netanyahu questioned the authority of the ICC by comparing ‘the monsters of Hamas with the soldiers of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), the most moral army in the world.’
