Far-right Israeli minister accuses ICC of making 'secret' request to arrest him
Israeli finance minister Bezalel Smotrich claims that the International Criminal Court (ICC) has made a secret request for an arrest warrant against him. He has dismissed the move as an attempt to intimidate Israel and has vowed to continue his policies regarding Palestinians. The ICC has denied the reports of the arrest warrant and has not commented further on the situation.
- ▪Bezalel Smotrich alleges that the ICC is seeking an arrest warrant against him.
- ▪The ICC has denied the initial reports regarding the warrant.
- ▪Smotrich has described the warrant as a 'declaration of war' and has vowed to take action against Palestinian targets.
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Far-right Israeli minister accuses ICC of making 'secret' request to arrest himBy Middle East correspondent Matthew Doran and wiresTopic:World PoliticsWed 20 May 2026 at 2:12amWed 20 May 2026 at 2:12amWed 20 May 2026 at 2:12amIsraeli finance minister Bezalel Smotrich says ICC prosecutors are requesting to issue an arrest warrant against him. (Reuters: Ronen Zvulun)In short:Reports have been circulating that the ICC is preparing to issue warrants against Israel's far-right finance minister, Bezalel Smotrich, and national security minister Itamar Ben-Gvir.Mr Smotrich says he would not be intimidated by such a move, labelling it a "clumsy attempt" to force Israel to change its policy positions.The ICC has denied those initial reports and not commented…
Excerpt limited to ~120 words for fair-use compliance. The full article is at ABC News (Australia).