ICC top lawyer could face inquiry by regulator in England over Israel charges

In its letter to Mr Khan, UKLFI set out a 24-page rebuttal of the allegations against Mr Netanyahu and Mr Gallant, using publicly available material. It claimed the ICC has “made no real effort” to seek out any “exonerating” material despite its “substantial resources”.

Among the ICC’s central allegations is that Israel imposed a “total siege” on Gaza. The lawyers set out the precise dates when crossings into Gaza including at Rafah were open, pointing out that through this period “large quantities of humanitarian aid” were transferred into the strip.

The UKLFI lawyers also challenge claims that Israel cut off water, electricity and fuel supplies, pointing to evidence that Israeli forces repaired pipelines and that Hamas destroyed nine out of 10 of the power lines from Israel to Gaza.

Their rebuttal said Israel had not repaired power lines because it would have been dangerous and electricity workers would have refused to do it, while Hamas continued to use electricity to light and ventilate its military tunnels. 

It added that Israel had facilitated regular transfers of fuel into Gaza and electricity remained available in the strip.

On the controversial shooting of three World Central Kitchen (WCK) aid workers, the lawyers noted that Israel had dismissed commanders who had failed to comply with the Israel Defense Forces’ (IDF) rules of engagement when they wrongly concluded the cars carrying the three were being used by Hamas terrorists.

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