Tuesday, 26 November 2024

Motions

Middle East conflict

Katherine COPSEY (Southern Metropolitan) (13:26): I move, by leave:

That this house notes:

(1) on 21 November 2024 the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants for state of Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, former state of Israel Minister of Defence Yoav Gallant and Hamas leader Mohammed Deif;

(2) the International Criminal Court prosecutor made a statement which included that ‘based on the evidence presented by my office, the judges have confirmed that there are reasonable grounds to believe that Rome Statute crimes have been committed’;

(3) the judges of the International Criminal Court found that:

(a) with respect to Mohammed Diab Ibrahim al-Masri, known as ‘Deif’, there were reasonable grounds to believe that he is responsible for the crimes against humanity of murder, extermination, torture and rape and other forms of sexual violence, as well as the war crimes of murder, cruel treatment, torture, taking hostages, outrages upon personal dignity and rape and other forms of sexual violence;

(b) with respect to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Israeli Minister of Defence Yoav Gallant, there were reasonable grounds to believe that each has committed the war crime of using starvation as a method of warfare and crimes against humanity of murder, persecution and other inhumane acts as a direct perpetrator acting jointly with others; and

(4) the ICC also found reasonable grounds to believe that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Israeli Minister of Defence Yoav Gallant are each responsible for the war crime of intentionally directing attacks against civilians as a superior.

Leave refused.