The European Union’s foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell, has stated that the International Criminal Court’s (ICC) arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, former defense minister Yoav Gallant, and Hamas’s military chief Mohammed Deif must be enforced. Speaking in Jordan, Borrell emphasized that the warrants were legally binding decisions made by an international court, not political ones, and that all 124 member states of the ICC, including EU countries, are obligated to respect and implement them.

In response, Israel has dismissed the warrant for Deif, claiming he was killed in an airstrike earlier this year, though Hamas has not confirmed his death. Meanwhile, the United States has expressed strong opposition to the ICC’s jurisdiction in this matter, with some U.S. officials suggesting sanctions against the court. Netanyahu has accused the ICC of anti-Semitism, drawing comparisons to the infamous Dreyfus Affair, and calling the move politically motivated. Several countries, including the Netherlands, France, and Italy, have indicated that they will act in accordance with the ICC’s ruling, though some are hesitant about arresting Netanyahu should he visit.