France has announced it may not act on the International Criminal Court (ICC) arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, citing potential diplomatic immunity concerns. This comes despite earlier commitments to uphold the ICC’s decisions. It simply implies, that for France, Israel is above International law—proven once again.
The ICC issued the warrants on November 21, alleging war crimes and crimes against humanity during Israel’s war on Gaza. While European nations largely pledged to cooperate with the court, France has shifted its position.
The French Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs stated that “such immunities apply to Prime Minister Netanyahu and other ministers in question and must be taken into consideration should the ICC ask us to arrest them and hand them over.”
This stance contrasts with Article 27 of the Rome Statute, the ICC’s founding treaty, which asserts that official capacity does not exempt individuals from criminal responsibility. However, France appears to base its argument on Article 98, which restricts ICC actions that conflict with international laws on diplomatic immunity.
Human rights groups have criticized this interpretation of France, stressing France, as a signatory to the Rome Statute, has a duty to cooperate fully with ICC arrest warrants.
This double-standard and hypocritical decision in France adds to the growing international debate over how to balance legal obligations under the ICC with considerations of diplomatic immunity and international law. It is another blow to the international judicial system.
