Israeli far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said on May 19 he was informed the International Criminal Court (ICC) prosecutor asked for a secret international arrest warrant against him [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7]. He did not specify who told him or the charges, citing the confidentiality of ICC procedures. Smotrich described the ICC as an "antisemitic and biased body that consistently stands against the state of Israel" and called the warrant request a "declaration of war" [2, 4, 5, 7]. He vowed to retaliate against the Palestinian Authority, saying, "The Palestinian Authority has started a war, and it will get a war" [2].
Following the announcement, Smotrich ordered the evacuation of the Palestinian Bedouin village of Khan al-Ahmar in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, a community of 200 to 750 Palestinians targeted for removal amid Israeli settlement expansion and efforts to create territorial continuity with nearby settlements [2, 3, 4, 5, 7]. He acknowledged the evacuation order is unusual for a finance minister to sign [5]. The village is surrounded by settlements and sits in an area Israel wants to control to divide the West Bank territorially [4, 5].
Wasel Abu Youssef, a senior Palestinian official, condemned the evacuation order. He called it "very dangerous" and urged an international response to stop such actions [2, 7].
Israel is not a member of the ICC and rejects its jurisdiction, but the Palestinian territories joined in 2015, allowing ICC investigations in the region [2, 7]. In November 2024, the ICC issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for alleged war crimes linked to the Gaza conflict [1, 3, 4, 6, 7]. The court has also sought arrest warrants for Hamas leaders, some killed in Israeli operations [1, 3].
Last year, Britain and four other countries sanctioned Smotrich and far-right Israeli Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir for incitement against Palestinians [1, 3, 4]. Smotrich supports permanent Israeli control and settlements in Gaza, a stance rejected by Netanyahu [1, 3, 6].
Smotrich held a press conference on May 19 to announce the warrant request and then gave orders for Khan al-Ahmar’s evacuation [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7]. The coming days may see increased tensions as Israel proceeds with displacement plans and the ICC case develops.
